Meine Lieblings Omi
In my book “Jet With Kids” I include the story of what inspires me to make things happen in life instead of making excuses. As a young nurse at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, I witnessed what “unexpected events” can do to one’s perspective in life.
NONE of my patients with head and neck cancer ever thought THEY would be patients - and certainly not facing poor prognosis and a dim future. This occurred regardless of ethnicity, social status, gender, age, and financial rank.
One patient of mine had an enormous impact on my life. I won’t go into detail here, but basically he told me not to put things off - to live life now because you never know what can happen.
Once again I must express thanks to that patient, whose words spoken over a decade ago still guide my life.
This past trip to Europe was last minute - planned and booked only 2 weeks in advance. It included an Italian cruise and the second portion took advantage of a free stopover in Frankfurt, Germany so that we could visit my 97 year old grandma in her small German village.
Right before our trip, my very independent grandma fell and was injured enough to be hospitalized. After a few weeks, she was able to return to her home (to the surprise of many).
My mother had flown to be at my grandma’s bedside (she was on a flight within hours of being notified - yes, frequent flier miles CAN be wonderful.)
So when we visited my grandma, my mom was there caring for her. It was the first time that I was able to experience 4 generation moments. My son was exceptionally well behaved and it was almost as if he could feel how precious these moments were.
My grandma had difficulty hearing and most of the time was not able to participate in our conversation- even though she spoke fluent English. She held my son’s hand as my mom spoke quietly to him. I then suggested that he sing a song to her. He smiled at me as he slowly and quietly began to sing, “Kommt ein Vogel” a simple German song about a little bird delivering a message.
My grandmother smiled and although he was singing quietly, she recognized the song and sang with him the ending. She perked up when she heard her 3 year old American great grandson sing a song in her native German language.
Those 4 generation moments were priceless. And almost never happened…
I had originally canceled the Europe trip since my husband and I were “too busy” to take that time off. Thankfully, I realized that we only get one chance at life and taking family time is worth inconvenience at work. So we booked the trip.
Those moments in Germany were the last I will have with my her…
My 97 year old grandma died yesterday.
Although I am happy that she is now in our Heavenly home and free from pain, I will miss her.
But I will always remember that visit with her, my mom and my son. The memories and photos I have of her holding my son’s hand and singing with him are priceless to me.
My grandma was an incredible woman. I always thought when I was a kid she was mean for making me speak German “when in her country”. Even though every year when my grandparents came to visit us, they both spoke English in “my country”. Years later, I now love to speak German and I can thank her for that!
I thank God she allowed my mom the freedom to travel at a young age. She encouraged my mom when she had the opportunity to live in Sweden and be a private nurse for a physician’s baby. She helped my mom to come to America when she wanted to be a nurse here - and did so at the Mayo Clinic, where decades later three of her daughters would be employed.
My grandma was selfless and prepared. She bought her coffin in advance and paid for her own funeral service so her family would not have to do so.
She taught us to love each other - no matter where someone called home. Countless refugees were taken into her home to share the little bit of food they had during the war and for years after as neighboring countries continued to battle.
Her life led to mine - raising a daughter she encouraged to travel and live life - eventually led to my parents meeting in Minnesota.
I am proud of my grandma- and the fact that I was named after her is very special to me. Her love of travel has been passed on to me and this has contributed significantly to my son’s life.
I hope that in 2008, I can “make my grandma proud” by helping others to travel the world as well as to take on the challenges that life as a traveling parent presents.
May your travel be safe and memorable in 2008.
Anya Clowers, RN
“Meine Lieblings Omi”