Monday, November 02, 2009

Nana

When I was 14, she was 66....
Blonde banana curls cascading down her back , dread locked ahead of her time. Skinny little legs and Blue Mascara. Patent leather pocket book exactly the color of The Yellow Submarine. My Nana. Skinny's Nana. Kimbies Nana. She was wild.

She laughed with no reserve, head tilted back, guzzling the wine of stolen moments from a long fluted glass.
She danced with the abandon of a Ballerina in red slippers, with the wind up wings of a Go-Go dancer, with the free spirit of a magpie faerie.
She told stories in a whispered language only those in cahoots would ever understand or remember in the morning.

She was tickled pink when women burned their bras, but believed in keeping the sexiest ones, the ones in ice cream colors and wicked lace, for the night time....
She rubbed elbows with everyone....catching their magic, and savoring it....
She Loved scary movies, patent leather boots, mini skirts, red lipstick, smokey bars, storytellers, rock and roll, Liberace, romance novels, and her handsome hubby....
She was wild....

She taught us secrets we'll pass on to our daughters and nieces....

I felt her,
heard her,
hugged her...
on Saturday night.....

And I know when she peeked down,
eyes sparkling,
head thrown back ready to laugh,
she was thrilled.

You taught me well, Nana.
I wore fishnets with the combat boots.....

11 comments:

Shimmerrings said...

Awwwhhh... sweet story... I wish I'd known mine. But, I had a crazy aunt that took the place of a grandma... and she was a little spitfire!

Justgivemepeace said...

Shimmerings....God Bless those that bless us with their wild Love! May it grow and grow and grow! You knew Nana, you just called her by another name....And Love grows!

Shimmerrings said...

Right you are, there... and Love does grow...

Sandy Kessler said...

mine too way bigger than life how lucky we were !!

Dee said...

That is so very special. I know it's an understatment to say, she sounds awesome. I miss my Gramma so much. She was so kind and funny. She taught me how to do the Charleston.

To me, Nana's, Nan's, Grammas, and Grandmother's = unconditional love.

An old friend of mine, hated her grandmother because she was so mean. When she told me that, I was shocked. I couldn't fathom that. I felt so sad for her. She ended up adopting my grandmother as her own so that made it better.

Thanks for sharing this story!

D.

singleton said...

Sandy....
I couldn't have said it better!
"Way bigger than life"....living, loving, laughing all the way through it!

Dee....But how wonderful, that your grandma became your friends, and now, she too....will have the blessing of the wise and wonderful, the open armed love we've all been so lucky to know.

I miss mine terribly sometimes, and then little tinks happen and realize she's been with me all along:)

Anonymous said...

PERSICHETT SAYS...

Ahhh...anohter wonderful Halloweeen I see! Glad to hear it! Tink!

Scott from Oregon said...

My Nana baked cookies...

singleton said...

LOL! Persichetti, Love! You know me well! Tink you, too, baby! All over the place! Ahhhhhh, the stories we could tell:)

Scott....Clink! Well, yeah, of course, you're a boy! Nana's sweetie pie you guys, they share secrets with us girls!

skinnylittleblonde said...

Mwah!!!
and when you were 14, I was four and would make myself cry knowing that no matter what you would have ten whole years more of her than me...hahahaha.
Gawd, I love that woman, you and the woman who ties us all together...our most exceptional and spirited mother!

singleton said...

ILYSVVM Skinnylittlesister and Love grows....here we both are ten years and more since the last time we saw her eyes twinkle...
still knowing,
feeling,
hearing,
believing.

Muah! To the Women in this rock and roll southern soul family!