I know your probably wondering what does these pictures have to do with a tribute to my grandmother. Let me tell you about her, we called her Granny Sharpton. Granny passed away last year in September while we were visiting in Georgia. It was unexpected and I wasn't ready for her to be gone. I felt a big loss. I walked around in circles wondering how I would get through the holidays that year! See she loved Christmas!! She would call me and tell me what she was making for Christmas for everyone. She would talk about her sisters, Lil and Betty. She would tell me the theme of Christmas or what she was doing with her tree that year or who was coming for Christmas. She tell me about her wondering if this would be her last. She knew we are on the Lords time and not our time.
What I remember most about her were the Christmas Parties at her house. See, we had her Christmas party the Sunday after Christmas. Everyone was invited. My younger memories were her making a lot of the food and desserts. There was the BIG table and the KIDS table. I think you graduated to the BIG table when you were 16 or 18? Or the year when aunt Betty dressed up as Santa for us as children. Granny always had a tape recorder, yes i said tape recorder going. She would hide it so that we wouldn't shut it off. Seems like at her funeral we kept that tradition alive and plugged it in. Then there were the FREEBIES from the apartment. Granny had a painting company. As she would work there she would get the "LEFTOVERS" from the apartment. At Christmas time she would say "this is a freebie" we all knew it came from the apartment. I think we were intrigued on what she got from there and many times we got a good laugh. I remember someone in the family got a box of condoms on year...leftover from the apartment. LOL! Sometimes you just never knew.....
As we got older traditions changed and themes took over. She started spot lighting someone every Christmas. We had to bring talents to Granny's house. Singing, dancing, story telling just something fun! One year Granny and Aunt Lil took nude pictures of themselves. Who knows if they were really nude butthey at least had their parts covered but everything else was sticking out naked. :) They had made a huge poster advertising that would sing and dance on stage. First drink free, bring your animals...and of course the pictures of them with strips covering their parts. lol. (Wish I had a picture to show you.) I remember them laughing as the told the story before the poster came out. Then she started the "big giveaway gift". I remember the first year she did it. My cousin Sherri won. We were all excited to see what she was getting because the gift was so big. When she opened it, it was a gun case, empty. We laughed for years. Since Ryan and I have been married he had never been to Christmas at Granny's. Years ago we went and had Christmas in Georgia. We attended and as the end of the night came, the "big giveaway gift" came out. It came down to Steve and Ryan, you picked a number who ever was closest won. Ryan won. OK, so what Ryan got that year was a man and women statue painted white. Nice right, well their bodies were nakked, and they were intertwined together kissing, making out. You get the picture. I laughed and laughed and laughed at his gift. I can't remember what he thought about it. No, it did not come on the airplane with us. Not sure who inherted it. I was glad we went that year.
So, I have written a lot. And now it's back to these pictures. Last year I was thinking of her so much. I went to Michaels and bought a bunch of craft stuff. I decided that I was going to make a wreath in honor of my Granny. Once I got going I decided to do garland for the fireplace. This year as I was putting it up, my thoughts went back to her and the fun Christmas Party's she would throw every year. She was a special lady who thought of her family and friends. She put others first before herself. She will be truely missed but never forgotten.
I love her and look forward to the day when I get to see her again. Merry Christmas Granny.
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