Forever and Ever Amen

Grandma is really only about 5’6″.  Give or take an inch; I’ve never asked or measured her.  However, she is slender and has this way of standing that is so elegant and posh that she appears to be at least 5’10”.  (Although, the four inch heels she always wears might have something to do with the creation of this optical illusion.)

Being musically talented runs in my family, and as far as I know it began with Grandma.  Decades after her dreams of becoming a famous singer had been completely dashed, she settled in to the piano bench at the front of Grandpa’s church and has been at home there for as long as we can remember, belting out a never ending love song for her Savior. Beyond the four walls of the tiny church, her love of music has been perpetually present in the house she and Grandpa have called home since the mid-1970s. No family gathering was complete without an impromptu jam session on the rickety, slightly out of tune piano that is cozied up next to the fire place in their living room.  When we were still little, our parents, aunts, and uncles made the rounds, singing anything from Christmas carols to golden oldies.

We grew up, as children tend to do, and all of my little cousins became the ones crowding the piano, taking turns filling the hundred year old house with music and warmth.

So it was only appropriate, when we gathered to celebrate our beloved patriarch’s 80th birthday, that music be the central element of our festivities.

My uncle took the stage along with three of my cousins and they gave us a medley worthy of the Grand Ole Opry.

At one point, they coaxed Grandma up onto the stage, because–let’s face it–Grandma belongs on the stage whenever one is available.

So there she was, swaying and dancing, with larger than life gestures that have always been her signature.  She accompanied my cousins in a sweet rendition of “Forever and Ever Amen,” singing to Grandpa.

“I’m gonna love you forever
Forever and ever, amen
As long as old men sit and talk about the weather
As long as old women sit and talk about old men
If you wonder how long I’ll be faithful
Just listen to how this song ends
I’m gonna love you
Forever and ever
Forever and ever, amen.”

Around the third chorus or so, as I was bouncing Roy on my hip, singing and dancing along, I got a little choked up.  I realized this was one of those moments that you have to hold onto forever.

My grandparents are probably not going to be around much longer, and this moment was a gift that we would all be able to keep long after they have left us.

These are the valuable things.

This what life is all about.