This week, I’m home getting better from an illness, so I’m handing over my column to Chris Wilson from Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal’s office.
-Neena
In memory of my grandmother:
A Thanksgiving to be
Thankful For
To tell you the truth, I have always had a hard time putting all my grandmother’s good traits into writing. No matter how hard I try, I can never do justice to what she overcame in her lifetime. She was born in Sonora, Mexico, on Sept. 6, 1911. Emelina Flores served her life as a great-great-grandmother, great-grandmother, grandmother, mother, sister, and friend. I was blessed to be a grandson of Emelina Flores. She always had a smile on her face and more patience then I have ever known anyone to have. My grandmother was known both as a trailblazer and a saint. She was considered a trailblazer because of her work with the poor and her constant giving to those who were less fortunate and a saint after having the privilege and honor to meet Mother Teresa in 1994.
We shared a lot of things together, and she was one of my favorite mentors. I can remember the last activity we did together, which was to watch a movie. If you knew my grandmother, she really loved to watch classic movies. Although we never agreed on what to watch, I always enjoyed our times together. She’d always ask odd questions about the actors or about the story. And I’d just laugh at her, and she’d keep on asking until I gave her the answer she wanted.
As a mother, she would always make sure her husband and children were fed first and whatever was leftover she would eat. It was Grandma’s loving nature to always put everyone’s needs before her own. I can still see her standing away from the table, beside the stove, watchfully making sure everyone had enough food. My favorite remembrance of her is in her long apron that went over her head like a collar and extended the length of her dress.
Although she never said it aloud, I think in her own way she was able to show us how important we all were to her. While I may no longer see her, I know I will always have these special moments that I shared with her. She will always have a place in my heart. I’m just thankful that I knew a special lady like my grandmother.
Emelina Sanchez Flores passed peacefully on October 30, 2011 at her home in Whittier at the age of 100. Days after her death, I wrote a poem in memory of my grandmother. These are my words through her!..
When I am gone,
Release me, let me go.
I have so many things to see and do.
You mustn’t tie yourself to me with tears;
Be happy we had so many years.
I give you my love,
You can only guess how much you gave to
me in happiness.
I thank you for the love
You have shown me;
But now it’s time I travel alone.
So grieve a while for me,
If grieve you must.
Then let your grief be comforted by trust.
It’s only for a while that we must part,
So bless the memories within your heart.
I won’t be far away for life goes on.
So if you need me,
Call me and I will be near.
And if you listen with your heart,
You’ll hear
All my love around you,
Soft and clear.
And when you must come this way along,
I’ll greet you with a smile,
And “Welcome Home.”
I know that as I write this, I can still feel her listening with me, comforting me, and living in me. This is the one true memory that she has to cherish, until we meet again.
