| Monday, October 26, 2009 |
| "Shmily" |
 My grandparents were married for over half a century, and played their own special game from the time they had met each other. The goal of their game was to write the word "shmily" in a surprise place for the other to find. They took turns leaving "shmily" around the house, and as soon as one of them discovered it, it was their turn to hide it once more.
They dragged "shmily" with their fingers through the sugar and flour containers to await whoever was preparing the next meal. They smeared it in the dew on the windows overlooking the patio where my grandma always fed us warm, homemade pudding with blue food coloring. "Shmily" was written in the steam left on the mirror after a hot shower, where it would reappear bath after bath. At one point, my grandmother even unrolled an entire roll of toilet paper to leave "shmily" on the very last sheet.
There was no end to the places "shmily" would pop up. Little notes with "shmily" scribbled hurriedly were found on dashboards and car seats, or taped to steering wheels. The notes were stuffed inside shoes and left under pillows. "Shmily" was written in the dust upon the mantel and traced in the ashes of the fireplace.
This mysterious word was as much a part of my grandparents' house as the furniture. It took me a long time before I was able to fully appreciate my grand-parents' game. Skepticism has kept me from believing in true love-one that is pure and enduring. However, I never doubted my grandparents' relationship. They had love down pat.It was more than their flirtatious little games; it was a way of life. Their relationship was based on a devotion and passionate affection which not everyone is lucky to experience. Grandma and Grandpa hold hands every chance they could. They stole kisses as they bumped into each other in their tiny kitchen.
They finished each other's sentences and shared the daily crossword puzzle and word jumble..
My grandma whispered to me about how cute my grandpa was, how handsome and old he had grown to be. She claimed that she really knew "how to pick 'em."
Before every meal they bowed their heads and gave thanks, marveling at their blessings: a wonderful family, good fortune, and each other. But there was a dark cloud in my grandparents' life: my grandmother had breast cancer. The disease had first appeared ten years earlier. As always, Grandpa was with her every step of the way. He comforted her in their yellow room, painted that way so that she could always be surrounded by sunshine, even when she was too sick to go outside. Now the cancer was again attacking her body.
With the help of a cane and my grandfather's steady hand, they went to church every morning. But my grandmother grew steadily weaker until, finally, she could not leave the house anymore. For a while, Grandpa would go to church alone, praying to God to watch over his wife.
Then one day, what we all dreaded finally happened. Grandma was gone. "Shmily." It was scrawled in yellow on the pink ribbons of my grandmother's funeral bouquet. As the crowd thinned and the last mourners turned to leave, my aunts, uncles, cousins and other family members came forward and gathered around Grandma one last time. Grandpa stepped up to my grandmother's casket and, taking a shaky breath, he began to sing to her. Through his tears and grief, the song came, a deep and throaty lullaby. Shaking with my own sorrow, I will never forget that moment. For I knew that, although I couldn't begin to fathom the depth of their love, I had been privileged to witness its unmatched beauty.
S-h-m-i-l-y: See How Much I Love You. |
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.......posted by Margaret @ 9:44 PM   |
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| 9 Comments: |
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That is a story of true love. Not many of us have that kind of love anymore. Sweet.
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That was an inspirational story. I will try to leave hidden messages for my wife. Thanks for sharing.
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Awesome.
That word gets used a lot but this is truly an awesome story and testament to love.
Thank you for sharing.
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Beautiful! I still have tears in my eyes. You are very lucky to have even witnessed such love! %
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What a wonderful thing to remember. How lucky you are.
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oh my goodness friend, how beautiful you wrote it and how even more beautiful they lived it...i needed to read this and i thank you for sharing such a blessing that you witness...how beautiful their love was, how committed and how tender...it inspires one to aim for it...nothing comes free or easy..i'm sure they not only loved each other but worked on loving each other daily. thank you again friend. i love you....and may i used it? the words i mean...shmily...xo
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ha, ha, ha i just found out about this and where it came from lol....xo still a beautiful story though..
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Happy Thanksgiving, Margie Mix!!
yup.
B-)
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omg! about a mounth ago my mom left a sticky note on the cabinet door that said SHMILY girls love mom and i couldnt figure out what it ment.I thought she was literaly crazy sticking things all over the house. When i asked her about it she said that id only know what it really meant when she was gone. After reading the story above i now relize that all shes doing is expressing her love to her family!!!We all play the game along with her now and it so much fun. Even though my sisters and step-dad still dont know what the word means im not going to tell them untill they figure it out for them selfs.
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That is a story of true love. Not many of us have that kind of love anymore. Sweet.