As I woke this morning and laid in bed,
my thoughts were about Gary's mom.
Mrs. Ashton, as I called her.
She's been on my mind a lot lately.
Just last week, I was having a
conversation with friends about
what they call their mother-in-laws and
what their daughter or son-in-laws call them.
Since I first got to know Gary's Mom, Afton, when I was 13 years old, she was always Mrs. Ashton to me. My Mom and Dad were Mr. and Mrs. Anderson to Gary. After 7 years of calling them by their formal names, it was very natural to just keep addressing them that way once we were married. I know that may seem odd to the less formal younger generations, but it wasn't to us. Of course, once the children came it was natural to address her as grandma.
Grandma Ashton was very
much a part of our lives.
much a part of our lives.
Jess, Gary's dad, died in 1969 at the age of 55
(Gary was just barely 15),
So, Afton was a widow for more than 30 years.
Through the very, very, amazing
history that Afton wrote before she died,
I gained a deeper understanding
of what motivated her
of what motivated her
and gave her direction
once her husband died.
once her husband died.
"What it boiled down to"
was that she was going to give her all to her family
and make sure that their life was not
was that she was going to give her all to her family
and make sure that their life was not
less because their father was gone.
There is so much to write about her
and her involvement in our lives,
and I will write more later.
She attended every event,
dropped by most days after her work,
usually bringing gifts and food.
We loved it at the time,
but I understand that need
even more now as a grandparent.
You just want to be able to "give" something.
On the lighter side,
the other event that brought memories
back was last week when I was
driving up Canyon Road.
back was last week when I was
driving up Canyon Road.
There was a long line of cars
behind a very slow driver.
behind a very slow driver.
For just one brief second the thought
came to my mind that it was Grandma Ashton.
Obviously not so,
but it came out of years of habit.
but it came out of years of habit.
Anyone living in the Edgemont area
of Provo knew Grandma Ashton.
If for no other reason than that if there
was a big line of cars behind
a very slow silver car at the front,
they knew who it was.
The girl's friends would tell them,
"We were behind your grandma today."
Neighbors would say,
"We saw a big line of traffic and just knew
it was Mrs. Ashton at the front."
She went through life
fast and with determination,
fast and with determination,
but she drove very, very slowly.
(Which was actually good because then you could get out of her way, should she decide at the last minute to change directions!)
So many memories. I miss her.
Gary with his Dad and Mom
Gary and his Mom at our Wedding 1974
6 comments:
My most memorable driving memory of with Grandma was when she took Angie and I to the mall to go shopping. When she pulled forward to leave her parking stall she high centered her car on a parking block! She always made life exciting.
Hello! I didn't know your e-mail, so I thought I'd leave this as a comment, hope you don't mind, but you've got to check this out, it's the software for your cricut I was telling you about...
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Afton was a 2nd mother to me and I loved her so much. The thing about Afton made you feel like you were one of her own kids. I would love driving bye Gary's home and seeing Afton with Gary's first base glove on, making him pitch his 3 innings a night. I miss her so much and want everyone reading this blog to know, she and Jess are the best!
I recall mom telling me once that your girls would never want for nice, new clothes as long as she was living. Nice stroll down memory lane. I liked her very much. A nice tribute to her.
That was fun to remember Grandma. One of my favorite memories was on the day before my wedding. She drove up to SL with Justin and I since we were all going to stay in a hotel the night before. At that point she was suffering with Alzheimers and she kept asking "Now where are we going?" I would reply "Justin and I are getting married tomorrow in SLC." To which she would say "You two, getting married? Oh, you are too young to be getting married, but I'll tell you Tiffany, you sure did pick a handsome young man. Look at those dark curls." I agreed. We had this same conversation a number of times in the 45 minute drive and I loved it every single time. So glad I have that memory with her and Justin.
Very nice, dear. I just got a chance to read this entry. It brought back many memories to me. Most of all, it helped me remember how grateful I am for family.
Love you,
-Gary
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