When I was a child, my favorite thing to do was go to grandma’s house. I used to give Grandma light pink flowers that I picked from the little yard she had. My mom would always dress me up and I would always smile. Grandma had many different colored flower in her yard. My older brother would pick on me while I was picking flowers, but Grandma would find something else for him to do. Grandma would sing lullaby’s to us as we sat on her couch and we would always end up falling slowly asleep. She would cover us with a little white blanket she had.

As I grew older, Grandma got sicker. She got cancer and had a tumor on her back. Doctors tried giving her medicine, but she wouldn’t take it. She never really liked going to the hospital or taking medicine. She would try to trick my mom saying that she took the medicine, but it didn’t work all the time. My mom would end up counting the pills to make sure she took them. 

One January afternoon Grandma died. I got off of school early to see her at the hospital. Grandma had lovely light pink flowers in her hands.  Everyone told me she was in a better place, that she was no longer in pain and that she was with God. Eventually I adjusted to her being gone, but I still had a hole in my heart. Every time I came across a letter she’d written or saw a picture of her, I would tear up.

One winter morning one years later, all that changed. When my alarm clock first went off, I drowsily hit the snooze button, closed my eyes, and pulled the blankets back around me.

As the warmth of the covers relaxed me, I drifted off ... and was back in the small yard with the smell of flowers in the air and warm arms around me. Familiar flowers that were different colors, covered the green grass. I could hear the bees buzzing, the birds singing, and the wind whispering. I looked up, and there was Grandma’s kind, smiling face. I lay my head against her shoulder and closed my eyes, comforted by the presence I knew so well. Then a soft buzzing sounded from far away. When I opened my eyes, I was back in my bed, pushing the turn off button on the alarm clock. Suddenly and peacefully, I realized God had just reminded me that Grandma was there from me. In those magical minutes I had finally understood that those we love will always be with us even after death.

I looked out my window at the sunrise and once again there was singing.