Remembering Grandma

I found out on Christmas Day that my Grandma von Harten passed away. It was a bittersweet moment because I knew she had been declining quite rapidly the last few months and was so tired and ready to be done with this mortal life, but at the same time I knew I would miss seeing this sweet, kind, loving woman.

The funeral was Tuesday and it turned out to be a beautiful sunny day. The funeral was beautiful and everything went well. The grandchildren were asked to say a few remarks about Grandma, so this is what I wrote:

There are so many things that come to mind when I think about Grandma von Harten. Her love of gardening and creating beautiful ceramics and afghans probably come to my mind first, but there are also the memories of spending a week at Grandma and Grandpa's in the summer with our cousins and looking forward to the homemade Christmas tree ornaments she would make us each year. Smells of bacon cooking and the taste of home-grown tomatoes, okra and homemade rhubarb pie and cobbler also spark memories of Grandma. She was such a great homemaker and such an example of self-reliance and hard work. She was an example of Christ as she was very selfless and willing to help those around her. Her life was centered around making her husband, children and grandchildren happy and by giving her time, talents and abundance to her friends and those less fortunate. One of my favorite memories is when my cousin, Beth, and I were spending a few days there together one summer. We loved swinging on the bench swing under our favorite climbing tree. This time though we were STANDING on the seat of the swing and swinging it really hard to see how high we could get it when all of a sudden it toppled over onto its side. We thought for sure we were going to get in trouble, but Grandma never came out to scold us, so we thought we had lucked out and she hadn't seen us. Quickly we set it up and acted like nothing ever happened. Years later we were talking about the incident and Grandma piped up and said that she HAD seen us, but that she didn't tell us. That was so nice of Grandma to not make a big deal out of that situation and to not make us feel worse than we already did. I also remember playing dress-up with all her colorful bead necklaces and playing house on their porches. I remember picking sweet strawberries and blackberries from their garden and snapping green beans and lima beans for dinner. I remember playing games from the closet that my dad and and his sisters had when they were children and sitting by the warm fire watching Grandma crochet and listening to stories she would tell about how my dad would torture his sisters. :) I remember all the little knick-knacks she had on her shelves and windows and the long bench at the dinner table everyone fought over. I remember riding in the church van to pick up kids for Vacation Bible School and prayers before dinner. She was such a sweet lady and was always interested in what we were doing. She loved holding her great-grandchildren and making them feel loved. She has left everyone a wonderful legacy and example of what service, love and dedication are.

My cousin, Scott Schauss, put together a wonderful video of her life and all the grandkids and their spouses sang I Believe in Christ. It was sad to see her go, but I know she is much happier now that she is with my Grandpa and isn't restrained by her feable mortal body. I am so thankful to have had such a wonderful Grandma and for the knowledge that someday I can see her again.

August 2009 - this was the last time I saw her living.

November 2007 - Thanksgiving

February 2007