My Pocket Bible

  On April 21, 2009, my dad gave me this bible.  It’s a perfect size to carry in my purse or bag and to pull out during a lunch break or in between classes.  It probably makes sense that my bible is important to me but not because of what you think.  This was my grandma’s bible.  This wear and tear you see and the folded down corners inside are not from me but from her.

   I was privileged to know my grandma for many years.  We actually lived with my grandparents in a big house in Fort Worth and then in Burleson until I was in the 5^th grade.  My grandma was a funny grandma that would do things like run to go get us something to eat in a drive thru, pay, and come all the way home and realize she didn’t have the food. Or would take us Christmas shopping and have us pick out what we wanted and then tell us to turn around as she hid in the buggy and we had to act surprised like we didn’t see her hide it in the cart.  And Oh she was famous for her vinegar potato salad. Not because it was delicious but because it looked like a yummy bowl of mashed potatoes with lots of melted butter on top.  No one but her own kids would eat it but it was perfect for tricking our friends and boyfriends into trying the “Mashed Potatoes”.  Everyone would stare as my boyfriend would take a big bite and he would have that awkward moment of not knowing what to do with it because you couldn’t swallow it and you couldn’t spit it out because the whole family was watching.

  She was a funny grandma and sometimes fun to make fun of. But there is one thing about her... She was a true woman of God.  Growing up I knew that but now I had the proof.  You see this bible was given to her in 2003.  So the bible isn’t very old.  But if you looked at the bible you would find that almost every page has some form of marking on it. Even though I find my self still laughing when I look inside the cover and she has all her great grandkids listed…most of their names spelled wrong, the middle name with the wrong first name and the right birthday month but the wrong day. Or the best one…a pretty poinsettia sticker by my dads name where she covered my mom’s name from when my parents divorced. She might have had many mistakes in the cover but when you got inside the pages you would find none.    Sometimes I spend hours unfolding and folding back and holding the little slips of paper she perfectly placed as I read what she found so special to her.  Sometimes I feel like she is reading me the scriptures.

   On a warm breezy day on April 21, 2009, my dad gave me this bible.  I remember that day so vividly because you see…that day we stood at my grandma’s grave.  Even though she was in her 80’s we lost her suddenly and no one was able to say goodbye.  That day I felt like I had lost a big part of my heart and my dad handed me a part of hers.   

This was a speech that I had to write about my most treasured item.  When I was asked to speak on this topic I immediately knew what I would speak on.  My grandma was an amazing women and even though most of my growing up was under the same roof with her, I wish I had spent more time with her.  I miss her every single day and can't wait to see her again one day.  She was the ideal grandma that most have never had but she was more than a grandma, great grandmother, and a mother...she was a true women of God. She was a strong willed Christian and I want to grow up and be just like her. 

Grandma loved her great grand babies

Our Wedding Day

Me and My Grandma

Grandma, Billy, and My Dad