Gifts from Grace

I have a very dear friend called Grace who is 96 years old and still lives in her own home and looks after herself totally. She is a wonderful lady, very down to earth and very determined. I have known her for the last 24 years since I met my late husband who was her neighbour. This lady was happy to go Ten Pin Bowling at the age of 84! and I mean, join in and play! (Just to avoid confusion this is not the same lady who lives next door to us). Up until only 3 years ago Grace was still working her own allotment and she grows her own vegetables in her little back garden. I admire Grace so much for her strength of spirit and independence and do what I can to help out when she'll let me. Anyway, I went to see her today to give her a hand with something and she had looked out a load of lace for me!

Isn't it lovely and aren't I a lucky girl?! She thinks she's got some more somewhere!

While we were talking she said she was going to recycle some old dressmaking patterns so she recycled those to me too!

Unfortunately Grace's sight is not all it should be as she has cateracts and one op has already gone wrong for her, but she loves me to take my projects round to show her and doesn't think I'm at all mad when I gleefully accept dress patterns and lace and tell her I will be daubing paint on them! She now tells me she has 2 suitcases of material that I might be interested in! Ooh! Yes please!

I have to tell you, this indomitable lady repelled a possible intrusion by 2 distraction merchants a couple of months ago. She came into her kitchen to find a man in there heading for her downstairs bathroom and muttering "water". Without a thought to her safety she demanded he leave and followed him outside to find an associate was loitering in her back garden. She promptly told them both to leave which fortunately they did! I don't think she was at all worried till she told her neighbour who phoned the Police. She now has to keep her back gate locked. What a world we live in!

Anyway, I don't want to end on a negative note with Grace. Earlier this year Grace was feeling a bit wobbly on her legs and was losing a bit of confidence when she was out in the town. She kept saying that she could walk perfectly well when pushing a supermarket trolley so eventually we decided it would be a good idea to try having a pushalong shopping trolley. She was able to buy a Sholley on the local market and my DH and I went along to help her. She had no sooner paid over her money and given the trolley a test jiggle than she was off! Didn't want us to go with her while she got used to it. No, she was off with a new lease of life! This lady was now delighted to find that she could now walk all along the street market and get to shops that she hadn't dared to walk to for some time. All this at 95 years of age! Grace, I salute you!