A Powerful Thing

"You don't need money, don't take fame 

Don't need no credit card to ride this train 

It's strong and it's sudden and it's cruel sometimes 

But it might just save your life 

That's the power of love "
                                                 Huey Lewis

During the summer months, I would visit my grandma & grandpa's house in the country.  I loved packing up my little suitcase & pretending I was entirely grown up, going away for a vacation all on my own.  I spent most of my time in grandma's room seated at her powder table.  Snooping through her jewelry box & makeup drawers, I would try on varied shades of terra cotta lipstick & Emeraude par fum.  She loved gold jewelry, coral scarves &  bright teal accessories; colors that reminded me of the ocean & California sunshine.  In my eyes, her closet was a magnificent glamour scene filled with beautiful pieces from Neiman Marcus to Dunlap's Department store.  Stored shiny items stuffed so tightly together (many with the price tags still attached) were wrapped in garment bags & shear plastic sheaths.  So many shoes...all neatly stored in stacked striped boxes. Hanging belts of every shape & color.  Her wardrobe seemed to be a never ending adventure fit for world travels, not the humdrum country lifestyle of it's surroundings.  But, I loved the contradiction of it all & I couldn't wait to grow up so I could fit into something from that  closet to have my own adventures one day.  Yes, Grandma loved to shop & oddly enough? Grandpa loved to take her shopping!  It wasn't unusual to hear him say "Mama, you want me to drive you into town today so you can buy a new dress?"   Wow, I thought grandpa had to be the coolest man on the planet!  But I did often wonder how a woman with grandma's total lack of cooking skill, zero interest in farm life & elegant style ever ended up in the country in the first place.
She told me once that as a child of the cotton fields, she had always hoped to grow up one day & leave the country.  She dreamt of a different life, one she had imagined through letters & gifts in the mail. Each year she & her sisters would receive a beautiful box wrapped in ribbons containing one school dress from their aunt.   Auntie was an enigmatic character who apparently left the country as a young girl & educated herself in the city.  She married wealthy & became a socialite.  Grandma shared photos of Auntie's beautiful Victorian style home & a brooch that had once belonged to her.  Auntie was regal & stately with impeccable style &  grace.  It was hard for me to imagine that Auntie had ever spent one day working in a cotton field, or for that matter even an afternoon in the sun!  She told me how she was always Auntie's favorite & how Auntie wanted her to come to the city after high school to continue her education, follow in her footsteps & leave the dirt fields behind.   I know that Grandma had met Grandpa sometime after high school & that he was an older, very eligible bachelor who not only owned some land & a few oil leases, but also had a great job.  A fine catch, handsome as the day was long with Native American heritage & steel blue eyes.   Here's where the details get fuzzy, but there must have been a breakup because they stopped seeing one another for a time & Grandma moved away. She started a new life with Auntie in the city & a new venture into secretarial school.  I could always picture her there with her perfectly coiffed curls & tiny frame. Such a beautiful girl, she must have been quite the splash in dresses & patent leather pumps making her way to classes upon the concrete.  As she told it, it was a great time, but there was always something missing.   One afternoon, Grandpa surprised her by showing up unannounced. Having just bought a new car, he decided to break it in by driving 300 miles to surprise her.  He told her he couldn't live without her any longer & asked her to marry him.  She said it was quite evident that he wasn't going home without her & well.. she was alll too happy to oblige.  :)
They got married that very weekend in Auntie's house.  Grandma settled into the country with Grandpa & she never looked back.  They were married 62 years before he passed away & although I never fully understood how the woman who seemed more Park Avenue apartment than country ranch house could have ever found happiness on the prairie,

 one thing is for sure..
She truly did.

Love is A Powerful Thing


Hepburn Hugs & Ric Ocasek Dreams

xo

Birdee Bow