Monday, January 26, 2004

Meet the grandfolks.

The picture on the left is a photograph of a portrait my mom has of my grandparents. It's dated 1940. I think it's a charchoal. I'm not sure who the artist was; it may have been my grandmother. She was very talented. The picture on the right is from 1979. My grandmother died that fall. She was in her fifties when she died. I can't remember if she was 56 or 58, but either way it was too young. My grandfather went on to live about another 20 years. He died a couple of years ago.

I think the family revolved around her. She was a strong character. She had a rough life. She was part of a rather large family. Her father was cruel. I remember the summers that I spent with her as some of the best times of my life. She taught my brother and I how to play Rummy. She taught me how to cook, knit, crochet, and sew. She would do my hair. There's a lot of snippets I remember but nothing really fluid to be able to tell her story adequately.

She left a lasting impact on her family though. When we get together, even after all these years, we still reminisce. Her name was Mallette.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

BlogLines strikes again! You know Robbie, I should've gotten this sooner. This way you'd NEVER have beaten me anywhere. LOL! OK! ON a serious note, very lovely pics of your grandparents! If that is indeed your gram's work she WAS very talented! I'm glad you have such fond memories of them both.

Gregg

Anonymous said...

Funny that you should do a piece on your grandparents on the same day I did one on my grandson. Karma, :)

Anonymous said...

I love those classy looking older pictures. My grandma has some hanging in her house, and I just love looking at them. They almost seem 'alien' by today's standards. Great entry, Robbie.

XO ~ Bridgett

Anonymous said...

Beautiful! Thanks for Sharing.
Kate

Anonymous said...

Mallette, very French. She sounds like a fascinating woman. You're so lucky you have memories of your grandparents. Mine on my Mom side died before I was born, and I have no surviving pictures of them, except for the painting of my grandfather hanging at the town hall where I was born, he was the mayor.

Anonymous said...

Wow, Robbie. A charcoal portrait of your grandparents done BY your grandmother? That's some big creative talent on her part! It's beautiful. Great pic of them in '79 too. How did she die? so young :(

Anonymous said...

Being adopted doesn't any room for memories of most of my family except my two sisters, but the memories I pass on to my grandkids one day, I hope will be remembered even if it's snippets like what you have. That's one of the reasons I write a journal, not only on AOL but personally. What a great photo to have, and a lovely charchoal portrait of your grandparents, that's just wonderful =) Mallette sounds like she had many talents other than her fine drawing.

Friends, Beverly

Anonymous said...

I really love these pictures! Thank you for sharing them.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for all your comments. As always, they are much appreciated. And, I so enjoy hearing about how it speaks to you personally.

Mallette is indeed a French name. Very observant of you Muse. I didn't even know this until a few years ago. I knew my grandmother was part French but didn't realize her name was also. In addition to being French, she was also Irish, English, German and American Indian. Throw in my dad's Romanian heritage and I am a true mutt. :-)

Anonymous said...

I forgot to answer Freee's question. My grandmother did die young, too young. Back then though the typical life expectancy was the mid 60's. People were considered old old in their 70's. My gram died of a Coronary Occlusion ???? Essentially, she had a heart attack. But, neither her, nor my grandfather realized what was happening. She became very sick and started throwing up. She laid down and died in her bed. Thanks for asking. :-) ---Robbie

Anonymous said...

Oh, beautiful photos and a beautiful story :) I love seeing family photos and hearing these kind of stories. They warm the heart. Mallette...what a lovely name~

Anonymous said...

hi Mallete! ahhh...she looked so sweet ...they both do. I am sorry she died so young, when my grandmother passed when she was 80...it still seemed to young for her :sigh: i loved her so. thanks for sharing Krobbie :)