Yesterday my sweet Grandma Merket died. For about a week she had been in very bad condition and so this was not a surprise, but it is still a hard thing to realize. She was a constant source of love and faith in my life and the idea that I won't see her for Sunday dinner, or go on vacation with her is still unreal.
Last night, after church, I spent a bitter sweet evening with family at the Merket's house. We ate the yummy food that the relief society had provided and we talked and hugged. Most of our talk was about our love for Grandma and the memories we had of her. Today I would like to share one of my favorite memories of Grandma.
A few years ago she organized a family reunion trip to Yellowstone National Park. Since I was living near her in California I went with the Merket's in their car to the reunion. We took Grandma's big silver sedan because it was so plush and comfortable. Grandpa did most of the driving and Grandma and Steve took turns in the passenger seat. After 5 or so hours of driving grandma decided I should take a turn at the wheel.
After I'd been driving for about 30 minutes one of the tires blew out. The car was thrown across the sandy median and into the other lanes before I was able to turn it back into the middle of the highway. We came to a stop and after a short pause the first words said came from my mouth, it was just one long low word, "Shit!" Instead of chastising me or being offended at my awful language and sketchy driving skills Grandma laughed at the cuss word and told me I had handled the accident like a pro. She soothed me, made sure everyone was okay, and even talked to the police.
After the tires were all fixed and we were back on the road she said two things that illustrate the wonderful woman she is perfectly. First she said that she and Grandpa had decided that I needed to drive again sometime that day. It didn't need to be right away but they wanted me to try again so that I would get rid of the fear the accident was putting on me. She would not take any arguing on this point. This perfectly shows her concern for me that was more then her concern for her car or even her own safety. It told me that she loved me and wanted me to be happy and well adjusted.
Second she told me about how most of that day she had not been wearing a seat belt because it kept locking. Just about 5 minutes before the crash she remembered a Sunday school lesson from a few weeks before about obeying the laws. The teacher had talked about the difference in heavenly and earthly laws. He told a story about his wife not wearing her belt and getting a ticket. This story came to her fairly clearly and so she decided to put her seat belt on. She said she knew now that the memory was a prompting from God and that she was so glad that she had heard it and followed his direction. This shows Grandma's faith and testimony so clearly. I am so glad she followed the Lord in this case and throughout her life.
I love my Grandma. She was a strong sweet and faithful women. She raised 5 wonderful children, and 1 lovely foster daughter. She has left behind her loving husband, all of her children, 16 grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren. I will miss her so much but I know that she will be waiting for me and each member of our family when we join her in the arms of our Father in Heaven.
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