Above is a picture of my Grandmother, Madeline. Not the blonde in the middle but the brunette beauty stepping into the scene to the left.

It’s the reason I love this photo so much.

This moment was a very special time in my Grandmother’s life. She was asked to join a well-to-do friend on a cruise ship to Italy. I love that this wasn’t the norm for my Grandmother and my family. I love to imagine my very hardworking Grandfather at home kissing her on the cheek before she left, her bags packed with new clothes she bought special for herself. You see, my Grandmother was very a fashionable woman. Anyone will tell you that. But at the core, she was a loving housewife who raised 4 wonderful children. She did all the cooking and the cleaning. She was fantastic at it all.

Despite the fact that she always looked so put together, my favorite memory is of her cooking us Pizelles early in the morning, sliding across the kitchen floor in slippers and her worn-in robe. I love that in the photo you can see that perhaps she feels a little out of place on this fancy ship. Maybe only 24 hours earlier she was brushing a knot out of my Mom’s hair or making sure all the golf tees were taken out of my Grandfather’s pockets before she threw them in the wash. Her head is down, she looks a little shy, little did she know she was the most gorgeous thing in the room. Both because her outfit is perfectly put together and because of her modesty.  I hope that moments after this photo was taken she let out one of her big explosive laughs. They were amazing to hear and I have luckily inherited the trait.

We plan to name our baby after her.

Living in this time, sometimes it’s hard to believe in heaven. It’s easier to believe in science. More important than all that is my hope. The dream that there is in fact a heaven where my beautiful Grandmother is waiting. She definitely deserves to be seen again.