Who Am I?

A Six a.m. phone call spurred this post.  I do have a lot of family adventures to share with all of you blog readers but after I couldn't go back to sleep after the news this post kept coming to mind.  When my Grandpa Lewis died I wanted to write down every memory that came to mind so I could always have memories of him close.  I never got around to it and 7 years later I wish I would have.

While driving around in the car yesterday doing errands, Ethan asked me, "Am I a Bartholomew or a Smith?"  I don't know what got him questioning this and I answered, "You are a Green!".  But then went on to explain that even though his last name is Green, he also had some Bartholomew in him and some Smith (not genetically) and some Lewis and some Henderson and some Martin (again, not genetically), giving all grandparents due credit to his existence.

His question made me think of who each of us are, where we came from and who got us where we are today.   I hoped that I was what my ancestors envisioned me to be.

That 6 a.m. phone call informed me that my Dad's mom had passed away.  Grandma Bartholomew has been posted about before.  Growing up I always thought my Grandma was different and I gravitated more towards my Mom's mom.  Different Grandma was - but a good different.  All can recall being offered her famous "green drink".  No one walked away from her house hungry though you may not have known what you had just eaten.  She always had a story to tell and no one told it as good as Grandma.  She saved lots of things and years later would give her treasures of old magazines, fabric, etc. as gifts.  She even saved wrapping paper so one time we wrapped Grandmas gift in multiple little squares of wrapping so she wouldn't be able to save it. Grandma was a re-gifter.  She would get her use out of it and give it to someone else to enjoy.  Her quote was:  "use it up, wear it out, make do or do without".  She encouraged her grandchildren to learn the articles of faith.  As a little girl I would practice and practice on my way to her house so I would be able to recite them when I saw her.  She also encouraged us to learn the hymns, In Our Lovely Deseret and Dearest Children.  Whenever I sing these hymns I think of Grandma. 
Grandma loved children.  Experiences in her life had her care for the children.  She was always entertaining them - washing the ladies dishes or finger plays of Tommy, Tommy, Tommy.  Even last week she was washing the ladies dishes with my nieces and nephew.  Grandma made sure that each baby born in the family received their own Book of Mormon with her and Grandpa's picture and testimony inside.  She was also famous for giving out $2 bills. (Ethan thinks they are worth LOTS of money!)

Grandma lived to see her 90th birthday but lived shy of reaching her goal of being published in the Church News.  She wanted to live one more year so the Church News would report on her and Grandpa's 70 years of marriage and announce to the world of their great posterity.  Grandma was proud of each of her 7 children, 51 grandchildren and over 132 great grandchildren (she has us all listed in a book but I haven't kept up on the growing number exactly).
I see my grandma in my Dad.  And I have picked up on the re-gifting that Grandma is famous for so I am sure my kids will end up with some of Grandma's traits too.  So today I tell Ethan, "Be proud you are a Bartholomew too a great heritage has been given to us!"

                                 

We love you Grandma and will miss you!