My Mamaw

I get sad when I realize that I have lost all of my grandparents. Each one of them had a special place in my heart. Luckily, I did not lose any of them until I was an adult. I am grateful for all of the happy memories I have with them.

My Mamaw Franklin was my mother's mother. She was a country women from the mountains of East Tennessee. She lived a hard tough life which occasionally showed through in her personality. Nonetheless, she was my grandmother and I loved her.

We lost Mamaw in the Fall of 2006. Each of the grandchildren that attended her funeral prepared a eulogy. Here is mine:

"Everyone here today had a unique relationship with Iva Franklin. Some of you knew her as Mother, some as Mother-in-law, some as friend, and others of us knew her as Mamaw. All of us grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren had a special and different relationship with our grandmother. I am Jenni and I was only 4 months shy of being the 'baby' among Mamaw's grand kids. I want to share with you what my memories are of my Mamaw.

My earliest memories are of Mamaw and Papaw living at the farm in Walland, Tennessee. Mamaw was a hard working - no frills - no fuss kind of woman. I remember her making cheese, butter and cream from the cows she milked every day; tending the farm;
and not having a lot of time for playing with us kids. She made our time at the farm fun, though. We helped mold butter; played in the barn; named the pigs; fished in the lake; and made lightning bug night lights in old mason jars.

When Mamaw and Papaw moved to Lakeland, I was about nine. At that time, I developed a different type of relationship with Mamaw. We shared meals every weekend. We spent Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and Birthdays together (hers and ours). She made her crafts and taught me a few of her tricks along the way. Mamaw was quite a seamstress and made my Halloween costumes for many years. They were always sure to win the costume contest! As I grew up so did our relationship. She was present for my Proms, Homecomings, Graduations and Wedding.

Mamaw was a kind, gentle and loving person. As a matter of fact for many years I thought she would let me get away with anything. Boy, was I wrong! This was a lesson I learned the hard way when she found out my friends and I decided to TP houses and 'egg' a few cars. She was very adamant that either I tell my mom or she would! I learned real quick that the wrath of Mamaw could be swift and fierce and she was NO pushover, as I had previously suspected. Trust me, I made sure that I never saw that side of my Mamaw again.

In the end Mamaw didn't know who I was. That was very hard for me, but I tried to always keep my memories in the front of my mind. Mamaw wasn't the same person I knew my whole life, but once again I was growing up and our relationship was changing.

Though all of us had a unique relationship with Iva Franklin, 'My Mamaw', we all have one thing in common - we all loved her dearly."

~Be at peace, sweet lady!