Everything But the Kitchen Sink

Last Christmas, we received a gift. The gift was from Grandma.  Grandma Dorrie was a spry, independent, beautiful mother of 5, grandmother of 9, and great grandmother of 11.  But she also had breast cancer and had been fighting and winning for years now.  But the cancer had begun to become much more stubborn, just like my grandma.  So last Christmas my grandma gave us all a gift, individually enveloped and signed with a "This is between you and me, love gram"  - So we wouldn't post about it on "that facebook".

Michael and I discussed what we were to do with such a gift: we could have put it into retirement, we could have put it toward a trip, but I knew I had to do something with it that was physical.  Something I could look at and touch and use and remember my grandma.  And I knew she would like that too.  So when I knew Michael and I were buying our home and that we were going to renovate it, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to find a place for the gift to always remind us of grandma.  But it couldn't be something replaceable like a light fixture or sofa.  It couldn't be something easily overlooked like a piece of impersonal art.  Or even something hyper-practical wouldn't do.  It had to be something central, used daily, beautiful, and something I have always dreamed of having.  There was really just one thing that fit the bill.  The Kitchen Sink. 

 

So, in my post-Christmas thank you letter to her, I sent her back this picture and told her proudly that we would be using her gift to purchase this sink for our new home.  She was so happy to know that we purchased something that we would have a use for in our daily lives.   

And the last time my grandma ever came for a visit, she got to see the sink - I made sure of it.  Covered with a dropcloth, and plastic still covering it protectively, she saw it.  

Then, only a month and a half later, the cancer took her.  My grandma passed away. 

I know she is in heaven now, praying for us even more diligently than she ever had before.  We always said "she has a direct line to Heaven" and now we know she is up there with The Father, celebrating a life lived in obedience to Him. 

So now, I have a kitchen sink that reminds me of her.  The cast iron material reminds me of her strength, fighting strongly against cancer.  The white color reminds me of her beautiful silver and white hair, it always looked prestine.  The large basin reminds me of her deep love for her family and God.

Simply put, I see everything but the kitchen sink.

We morned the loss of my grandma today- as we will in the days ahead- but we celebrate her life also, and the new life she has with The Father above - absent of pain and cancer.

I love you grandma!  And thanks again for the gift.