The passing of a Friend

He was wrapped in a towel that covered his head.
He lay very still, not a blink, not a nod.
No cat conversation, no warm loving purr,
Just silence spoken louder, a painful reminder
The best, as it were.
He no londer stands with his paws on my knee
to ask if a jump up could be here for me.
No more hair baths, nor staring at near empty bowls
Nor sharing of seats sprawled out the full length
For he was a long animal, when sleeping beside
Me as I watched TV.
Now his spirit divided lives on somewhere else,
And his skin, as Ben calls it, is wrapped in a box
That is buried by Bob and Chuck in the back yard,
He's probably still talking as loudly as ever,
But I cannot hear him, and that is the problem.
So, ghostly catcalls like Tink in the dawn
Will have to do me until I move on.
That's life as we know it, and I guess that's death, too.
I hope that this writing will pull us all through.
I love you, Sammy, wherever you are.
Your Human

Summertime Grandma

"Oh, what do you do in the summertime when all the leaves are green?
Do you swim in the pool to keep yourself cool or count all the stars in the sky?
Is that what you do? So do I!"
(HEY! Waittaminnit! that's not what I do!!)
I read books and stay up verrrrrrry late and eat ice cream cones in the middle of the night!!
So far this summer I have read eleven books, not gone to bed before midnight every night and eaten (never mind! That's a secret!)
It has been ages since I wrote to you.
The end of school was very scary so I haven't even finished cleaning up my office.
Today I had lunch at Wingstop with my best friend, Ivy Sweeney and we talked about stuff and now I'm ready to get back to work on school plans.
Grandpa bought me a set of books for my birthday that were written by Madeline le'Engle. They are a boxed set of paperbacks and I CAN'T FIND THEM ANYWHERE!!! Aunt Jessica says I didn't leave them at her house in March, So I guess I will have to clean house (ugh...) hunting for my missing books. Phooey...
So, wonderful Grandpersons, what are you doing??
Are you :
A. having picnics
B. sleeping in
C. swimming
D.reading books
E. all of the above
TTFN, (Yawwwwwwn)
G on Vacation

Cartoon Time, Warner Brothers Style!

Well, Grandma soared to a new high tonight! She and Grandpa Case went to a concert called "Bugs Bunny on Broadway". The Tucson Symphony Orchestra played with headsets on , listening to click tracks while we watched cartoons!! That music was REALLY hard!!!!! They matched the cartoons perfectly. That is not easy to do. When the music was oroginally played, they would rehearse a 40 second section and then record it, moving on to the next section. This orchestra played all the way through the cartoon. We saw "Kill the wabbit" and the orchestra accompanied the screen. It was am amazing experience. I felt like a kid and an adult all at the same time. I could tell by the cheering in the audience that I wasn't alone. I hope when you are 62 you are still having amazing experiences!! (If this were my cellphone I would put a BIG grin next to this sentence.)
Hopefuly, you will all have an amazing experience next weekend when we see and hear our living prophet and receive a new apostle of the Lord.
Did you know that Nephi built a temple? We are so blest to be alive now, when the world is dotted with temples and we have satillite transmision so that we can participate in their dedication. Ask Cousin AJ or Arianna or Aryus or Sabrina or Laura what that is like . They were able to be 'present' at the dedication of the Draper Temple last Sunday while they sat in their church house.
I love you all so much. I wish I could share in all your experiences and you in mine. You are in my prayers morning and night. But for now, we will have to share this way. All I know is that when the orchestra was wailing out Wagner (pronounced Vahg.ner) Uncle Jeff would have risen out of his seat! What tooting!!
Oh, by the way, we had a wonderful time visiting Uncle Alan and Aunt Jessica last week. We even got to attend AJ's band concert! And we surprised Aunt Jessica and she screamed when she found us sitting in her livingroom. It was a great surprise! (smiley face)
Uncle Mike and Aunt Caty have been fighting with some sickness at their house. We hope they will be well soon!
And we have had three cousin birthdays since I last wrote: McKayla, Davey, and Benjamin. Happy Birthday, Special Grandpersons!
I guess the greatest news of all is that Aunt Nina is pregnant! She and Uncle Rob celebrate this news every day.
Time to make deviled eggs and coleslaw and work on my nursery lesson.
I love you. Tata for now. Sweet dreams, most precious chidren in the universe
Gma

Queen Grandma and the Chicken Soup

The days of fluless Grandma were short lived, for alas, she was stricken again and forced back into bed. She dragged into school on Monday morning and Pat-the-Wonder -Woman cried out for a substitute. Soon he arrived, and Green Grandma dragged back home, Soon Princess Caty caringly brought chicken soup and crackers and put "Prince Caspian" into the video player. She even mailed our package to Jeffrey-the-Great-distance. I know several of you have had the flu many times and I understand how discouraging this can be. See if you can find the Tom T Hall song called "I Care". I think that's the title. (I used to sing it to Jessica, Jeff, and Chuck when they were very small.) Sing it to yourselt and pretend I am singing it to you. I love you, too.
Squnches, (yawn)
grandmaaa zzzzzzzhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eUJxiS3fr0

The Dark Grandma

So, where's "the Dark Grandma?", you might ask. Well, let me tell you a story about her and I'll let you guess.

In a time not so long ago, there lived a grandma who struggled to get things right. She was particularly prone to wander through her home wondering what pile she should attack first. She was a listless grandma, who got lost from room to room. Finally, when there was no orderly room in her whole kingdom, not even her royal restrooms, she lay down and cried all alone on her half of an unmade bed and tried to fall asleep.
That was when a still small vioce commented that she could pick a very small spot and clean up only it. With a sigh, she rose and went for her dusting equipment. "The wardrobe", she whispered to herself. It had not been dusted in ever so long, and it had some strange things lurking insdie. The TV and VCR were standing silently one above the other. "I could watch TV while I work!" The BYU channel popped up first as someone with a white beard was answering doctrinal questions, so she left it there. "What are headsets doing in here?", she pondered as she took them out into the light and dusted them off. She began to make some piles on the bed. Of course, she had made the bed first to provide a working surface. Soon there was a small trash can to collect any junk. Finally, the whole wardrobe was dusted and cleaned out, the window blinds dusted, the bed rails dusted, and the dark grandma wasn't feeling so dark any more. In fact, a movie called "The best Two Years" was playing and she was sitting there absorbed in it. I guess you could have called her "the Light Grandma". And when Grandpa came in to see if she would like to ride to Walmart with him, she cried and he held her in his arms and just loved her.

Why am I sharing this story? Because sometimes everyone feels a little lost and alone. They might not know where they can get help. Maybe they are part of the lost tribes, or maybe they just need a hand up. When your bedroom makes you feel unwelcome and your homework too great to finish, remember God. If he can shed some light on a grandma, He certainly can shine on you. Spiritual batteries are more important than you know.
Hugs and Goodnight.
Your Grandma

:Tis Gone,; Hear, Hear!

Tis gone,
Hear, hear!
Let's raise a cheer!
Stripped the bedding;
Mattress turned.
Oh yes, a nap she now have earned.
First she was clueless
But now she is "fluless".
Softly let us raise a cheer.
Hear, hear!
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Grandma is sleeping, never fear.

New Words to an Old Song

Oh dear, what can the matter be?
Oh dear, what can the matter be?
Oh dear, what can the matter be?
Grandma has gotten the flu!
She promised to clean up the counters and dishes,
She promised to answer the cards with good wishes,
She promised to sort out and throw away piles of papers before the new year.
There's work at the school house and work in the closets,
And piles and piles of paper deposits,
But Grandma just smiles and says with good cheer,
"I was well for the wedding and Christmas this year."
So, I've eaten chicken noodle soup and an In N Out double double, covering all the bases. It's 1:22a.m., and I get my new shoes at 9:00.
I love you all more than you can know. I now have new pictures of the delightful Italian Cases, and I wish you the very best this new year!
Sorry, AJ. No vomiting or diarrhea, so the count still stands.
Hugs from a distance,
G-mama