A Lasting Legacy

My grandma passed away several days ago. Had she lived another month, she would have been 93.

Although she lived a long life physically, she had been absent mentally for quite some time–a prisoner in her own body as Alzheimers preyed upon her and eventually ravaged her mind.

In light of her passing, I’ve been remembering her for the beautiful woman of faith she was and the ways in which that shone through. Even after she was diagnosed with Alzheimers, one visit with her over a decade ago left a lasting impression on me. She was still coherently speaking at that time, and her compliments and words of encouragement over me freely overflowed from the sweet kindness of her soul.  It’s a memory that I’ll always associate with the verse below:

The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

Luke 6:45 ESV

She had a lot of good treasure in her heart; the fruit of the Spirit was manifest in her. It’s something I had seen about her all my life, but that fruit only seemed to ripen as she drew nearer to the end. God’s light was evident in her although the rest of her was growing dim.

I only got to see my grandma three more times after that visit, and by then, the disease had claimed her ability to speak. I’m not sure what all my grandma could understand in those last years, but I told her through tears on one visit just how much she meant to our family and me. She raised her children taking them to church and telling them about Jesus, and her prayers for them and example of faith undoubtedly had an impact on them, which has blessed us grandchildren and our families in turn. Many others were impacted by her as well through her years teaching children in Sunday school and her involvement in church in general. I hope she understood what a blessing she was to so many of us. If she didn’t here on earth, she surely knows that now!

I have felt so nostalgic these past few days as I have relived moments with her in my mind and have heard of fond memories that other family members had of her. It is bittersweet to know she is gone. I miss her and the life she had before Alzheimers claimed her mind. But now the disease has lost its grip on her,  and she is more alive than she has ever been!

Although we have had to say goodbye to this precious, beautiful woman this side of heaven, this is not the end. We will see her again! But until then, I will forever be grateful to God for the life of my sweet grandma and her legacy that will continue to impact the generations to come.