“I miss you, I miss your smile.”

it's fascinating how fast a year can go by. this same exact day last year, i remember all i wanted to do was go home and cry. as i was packing up my things after a chemistry lab, i received a text from my dad saying that my grandmother had past away. i remember getting it and wishing i was in tucson with my mom at the time. i was so sad, and the only one that had bothered to ask what happened that day was my newspaper teacher, mrs. miller. she gave me a warm hug and told me i could lay down in the back of the class if i wanted to. but i didn't want to do that, i wanted to be with my family. my maternal grandfather passed away when i was 3 and a half and both my paternal grandparents passed away before i was born, so "grammie" {as i called her} was special to me. 

she was the first person close to me that passed away in my life and even though i remember her as a grouch half the time {sorry mom} i continue to think about her all the time. and i know she is looking out for me from up above. she is my angel. 

her funeral was in june and her ashes were buried along side my grandfather and my uncle widgey {whom i have never met} in hudson, new york. it made me very sad as i didn't recognize anyone except my dad, mom, and brother, my uncle johnny, aunt judi, and two cousins of my mom's. i wish more of my family could've come along, so we could've shared some memories. 

the last picture i have of us, is when i last visted tucson. {wow, has it really been longer than a year?} we went as a family to go hiking and visit family like we normally do, but this time we brought the doggies. it was the first time i have seen her with a smile on her face for a very long time. and hey, she actually liked them! it makes me very happy to see that documented smile.

so today isn't a day i mourn, it's a day to remember all the great things grammie has done. 

at the end of it all, we are re-united in the Kingdom of Heaven with our God. ❤️