Mavis Ruby

Home briefly today - my dear Grandma passed away on Saturday morning and today we say goodbye.

Where do you possibily begin to put into words the reflection of more than forty years of loving your Grandma.
I was brought home from hospital to Grandma and Grandad’s house and for all of the time until their moving into Beauaraba Lodge I spent many days and hours in their home, Meldon Park, Pine View and Donovan Street. Each home different but always the same love and care shown there.
Sundays after church for lunch and then the afternoon with Dad helping in the dairy so that, at least one afternoon a week Grandma didn’t have to. I loved holidays with Grandma too, with little competitions that lasted for the time of the visit with of course me always being the winner in the final total. Wogs and quoits always on the list of things to do. Chips for the wood stove, eggs to gather, the dairy to visit, cows to feed, always things to do that were different from the farm where I lived.
Grandma singing, yodelling and of course whistling - so very Grandma. Her love of music always shining through and her interest and enjoyment of my music was always so evident.
I think Grandma must have been the Queen of fiddling with little bits and pieces and the creations that we were given, forever to be treasured. Golliwogs, little baby dolls dressed beautifully lying in little cradles carefully painted and decorated with lace and little satin bed clothes. Even a couple of outfits for “Barbie”. I have only recently remembered too, the beautiful little scrap pictures Grandma had and the books that they were pasted into. Of course in later years, the beautiful crochet rugs for her Great Grandchildren are more treasures for another generation to hold dear forever.
Through all her illness, her years of hard work and making do she was the loving, kind and generous Grandma any person could wish for. Never complaining, always kind and patient, these qualities have continued to be my Grandma even in these final years of her life.
The journey of grief in the gradual loss of my Grandma has been a long one. With the many stages of her dementia, I have felt the loss for so many years. But, just one smile in the past few weeks reassures me that deep inside our beautiful Mavis Ruby remained even just a small part of the Grandma I have known and loved for more than forty years.
Always there, forever in my heart and my memory, my Grandma – Mavis Ruby.