Words of Wisdom from the Women in My Life
Image Courtesy: Michelle Brown
Throughout my childhood, I spent my free weekends visiting my great-grandma’s.
My dad would load my siblings and me into the car and drive forty-five minutes from our neighborhood in Grosse Pointe, MI, to Detroit, MI, to spend the day with his grandma and our great-grandmother, Gran. On our way to her residence, we almost always stopped by Coney Island to pick her up her most beloved treat, a Detroit classic: a Coney Dog. Gran lived in a retirement home, and other grandmas and grandpas always sat in the lobby when we walked in. I can almost smell her hallway now; I so closely associate it with our visits. When we walked through her door, she embraced each of us with love. I can still feel her kiss on my cheek right now.
We never just stayed for lunch. We would spend hours and hours crowded in Gran’s living room on her couch and floor while she sat cozied up in her enormous armchair.
Image Courtesy: Michelle Brown
Independence is a gift.
In that living room, I met Gran for more than my great-grandma, but for who she was. Gran was a fiercely independent woman. She cherished the routine we consider mundane- waking up to hear only her thoughts instead of chattering in the next room, sleeping in and going to bed past ‘bedtime,’ regulating the energy of her space. Things we so often take for granted. Gran taught me to take advantage of the normal and treat it as a blessing. Dictating the rhythm in which you move through this world is a gift; it makes life your own.
When we were not in Gran’s living room, we were gossiping in Grandma’s kitchen. Grandma is my mom’s grandma and my great-grandmother. She is the definition of beauty and grace. She was never not ‘done.’ She did not simply pull on clothes in the morning; she put together a look. She bejeweled herself with earrings, necklaces, and rings and perfectly swooped her airy gray hair. Oh, and do not let me forget her makeup! My mom told me that when Grandma was in the hospital, she refused to let even her family visit her without coating her lips with her signature ruby-red lipstick. She was truly an icon. Grandma’s presence reminded me to ensure that my outside matches my inside and to never show up as less than myself.
Image Courtesy: Michelle Brown
Celebrate your life.
Grandma celebrated every year of her life with an extravagant birthday party from 90 years old onward. Grandma’s birthday quickly became a holiday within my family. We looked forward to surrounding her with love and belting out ‘Happy Birthday’ while we admired her beaming smile. Grandma was the moment, and she carried herself as such. She did not step out of the spotlight but leaned into it. She knew her life was worth celebrating. I have taken so much from Grandma’s life, but most importantly, the importance of shamelessly celebrating myself and fully opening my heart to the reception of love.
My great-grandmas, Gran and Grandma, are no longer physically with me. However, their souls reside inside of mine. Their womanhood revealed through their memories and stories, informs my own. It is because of them that I know I am an independent woman worth celebrating.
Strike Out,
Madison Brown
Editor: Grace Maneein
Athens