The Waterslide

The expression on her face was priceless. Intuitively, I knew Daddy was her favorite of her four children, but I think she did a good job of making all her kids feel loved. I thought about all the eclectic vests she’d given me for Christmases over the years and how every card I’d ever received from Grandma arrived with the most important words underlined for emphasis making sure we knew that we were the absolute BEST. I’m going to miss going to Sweet Tomatoes with her.

Though I don’t recall any specific line of advice or profound quotation from my grandma, I do have at least one powerful lesson I’ll keep. You see, Grandma never learned to drive. Ever. When we spent time with Grandma, it meant driving to pick her up twenty-five minutes away and bringing her to our house or just visiting her at the nursing home where she worked and eventually lived. Dad told me she didn’t drive because that way she never had to be alone. Her fear of loneliness kept her from developing independence and so she came to rely on everyone in her life for support in nearly every facet of her life. I couldn’t imagine having to call someone to take me to the grocery store every time I needed something. Now, I can’t say that I’m never going to fear loneliness because I think everyone does to some degree, but I will say that the lesson here is to find a balance between investing in yourself and relying on others because both are important. Had she learned to drive, she would’ve had the option to drive to see her loved ones when she wanted instead of seeing them when she needed. Grandma was blessed to have children, friends, and even grandchildren who would do anything for her, but the situation could have looked rather bleak were that not the case.

I titled this post The Waterslide after listening to Ben Folds’s “Not the Same” on the drive home today. I liken life to a waterslide of sorts. At water parks, there’s always a slide to be conquered, be it the baby pool’s slide with an incline of 30 degrees or the steepest BAMF that makes your bladder want to internally combust just thinking about it. Everybody slides, meaning everybody who lives dies. You just better hope and pray your ride down was worth it.