i miss her...

Yesterday I took Ruby on a walk to visit Ruby Hovden (the cute little lady that we met at Walmart last month). She had been dying for her husband George to meet “Little Ruby”, and since the weather was so nice, I decided it would be a good time to pay them a visit. They live in a retirement community (just north of us) that I had driven by several times, but never (before yesterday) had any reason to go in. I had to walk several blocks through the community before I arrived at the Hovden home, and as I did, this sensation came over me that I can hardly describe. The familiar ambiance took me back to my childhood…my childhood with my Grandma Pitts. Sadly, I only have a handful of memories of Grandma, and most of them were created during a family vacation we took to visit her. Grandma lived in a retirement community (in Phoenix) very similar to the one I was strolling through; and yesterday, as I strolled along, my mind wandered back to that vacation…so many years ago. I remember going to her pool with my brothers (and grandma of course), and seeing her in a swim cap doing laps across the pool. I remember her taking us to meet her friends and bragging about us the entire time. I remember feeling embarrassed at the restaurant as Grandma gave orders to our server. I remember that her house was immaculate…and had the aroma of coffee. (To this day, I love the smell of coffee…it makes me think of her).
I remember taking a stroll on her bike with the basket, and I remember her huge grapefruit tree...
I remember her beautifully manicured nails and her amazing shoe collection (my love for shoes must be inherited). I remember her bright smile, and her “root beer” hair, and her Saturday morning phone calls, and the tone in her voice as she always asked “how are you?”…
She’s been gone for more than fifteen years now and I really miss her…