Love Letter

My Grandmother had 2 strokes about 4 days apart in early February. Since then she has ben in the hospital and then to a rehabilitation facility. She is remaining positive, though she has yet to see any movement from the right side of her body. She is thankfully still able to speak, swallow and she is just as sharp as she was before. I was able to make it down to NC 2 weeks ago, to be with her. This is a copy of an email I sent out to my aunts & uncle of one of the afternoons in occupational therapy:

Love Letter.

Today in occupational therapy, Grandmamma expressed a great desire to try to learn to write with her left hand; “I teach bible study and need to be able to read and take notes”, she said. So the therapist gathered a note pad and pencil and Grandmamma began practicing writing. First she drew lines and circles, then her name and then started working on the alphabet. The therapist then began to ask her about things that she did at home and we got on the subject of Grandmamma bread. The room that OT (occupational therapy) is held in has a full kitchen, a couch and bed; so that patients can work on all kinds of things that they’ll be doing around their house. The therapist asked her what types of things she needed to make the bread. Then asked her to try to write the recipe. At this request, Grandmamma said, “are you kidding me”, and then turned her nose up to her scribbley left-handed writing. The therapist encouraged her to just try and if we couldn’t read it we’d re-write it. So Grandmamma began…

3 T potato flakes

1 cup sugar

hot water

Then explained this is the starter and you let it sit for 3 days… As Grandmamma was talking another therapist walked past us to pick something up and commented on the note pad, “writing a love letter?”; Grandmamma continued on, explaining how after 3 days you add this and that and let it sit overnight. Then she has stopped writing and just explained the process of making Grandmamma bread. The therapist and myself sat just listening. At this point the therapist is amazed at how much goes into making the bread and I’m beginning to tear up at bit just listening, I never knew it was such a process. Our therapist then comments on how it takes days to make this bread that only takes 35 minutes in the oven; and I add, “yes and it only takes about 10 minutes for us to eat a whole loaf”. Grandmamma looked at me and smiled and then back to the therapist and said, “when the other therapist asked if I was writing a love letter, I’d say I am, this is my love letter to my grandchildren. When they come to visit they don’t ask for chips, they want Grandmamma bread.” And by this point I have absolutely lost it (as I’m doing all over again as I type this).

What an amazing grandmamma I have; So patient and loving.

Wanted to share this moment with you all, not to be a tear-jerker, but just gush on how wonderful she is. It was such a blessing to be here the past few days. So it can be passed along to my cousins about our love-letter-recipe.

-Melanie

You have to understand that we eat so much "grandmama bread" when we visit, she just makes so much and we all love it!! :) I had no idea it was such a process and a beautiful act of love.