My Memories of Lola Mae, Part 3

Grandma made many quilts. Every time we went to visit, she would pull out several she was piecing to show us and one she'd recently finished. While I was a young child, she would also have some clothing she'd made for me. It would be a dress or a skirt or a nightgown. One year, I decided to make a skirt myself. She helped me pick the pattern and material, pin and cut, pin and sew. It was a long process; I thought I'd just be able to sew a few seams and have something to wear. After that, I spent many hours sewing Barbie clothes. Grandma wouldn't let me use the machine for the Barbie clothes because she was afraid I would sew my finger, so I used a needle and thread. She also taught me to crochet. I made a simple jacket for the Chihuahua and a decent sweater for my Cabbage Patch Kid, Cassie. She was as proud of that sweater as I was. As a teenager, I decided to try making a quilt with mom and grandma. We all pieced a bit of it and had it quilted, then I used it in my college dorm room.

At night at her house, I would beg her to tell me stories about when she was a little girl until I fell asleep. She would lie in the bed and tell me about running out to the road to see cars as they passed by because she just hadn’t seen many cars before. Her daddy had a cotton farm and she did her fair share of picking cotton. She told me how she'd carry a long bag down the row, picking handful after handful, putting in into the bag until it was so heavy she could barely drag it. As she told the story, she would rub her fingers remembering how chapped her hands would get. She told me that she didn’t like babysitting as a girl and would “peench” the baby to make it cry so mother would take it back.

There were sad stories, too. The Newman family was moving to a new home and packed up all their belongings on a wagon. Lola Mae, about 17 years old, drove the wagon with her mother, Minnie, sitting in the back. Minnie was pregnant and holding onto a clock and her sewing machine instead of her seat. As Lola Mae drove the wagon through a ditch, Minne fell out and under the wagon. She was run over and died right there. Grandma always felt her father held her accountable, and I think she couldn't forgive herself, either.

Even though she was nearly 70 when I was born, I remember Grandma as a tall, strong woman. She inspired me to be a strong yet humble and serve the Lord at every opportunity. I hope I can live up to her example.