Grandmama's photo boards

Though this past week has been a really, really difficult one for my family, the services that were held for Grandmama were very much celebrations of her life and reflections upon the great love and faith she had in Jesus Christ, and my mom and my aunt were dead on when they said she had every single fruit of the spirit.  She really did!  It was tough to let her go, but I remembered these words from a poem shared at my dad's mother's funeral, and they brought me such comfort:

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn's rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft star that shines at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there, I did not die.

-Mary E. Frye

How wonderful it is to remember that we serve a living God who does not allow those who follow Him to perish!

For Grandmama's memorial service at First Baptist Church in Greensboro, NC, Mom had the brilliant idea of having photo boards placed in the atrium to give all her friends, particularly those who hadn't seen her in a while, a chance to see all she had done and loved during her life.  So, I got right on it, and everyone loved them!  So, here's your chance to enjoy a few pictures of my grandmother, who, by testament of that full chapel, is loved very, very much.

(You may want to click on the pictures so you can see each individual picture on the board easier).

The older picture on the bottom row is Grandmama and her two older brothers.  They loved doting on their little sister!

Grandmama holding me shortly after I was born.

Grandmama (second from left) and some of her high school friends.  She always loved being with her girlfriends and adored her Chi Omega sorority sisters!

This picture was actually meant to be an advertisement for Burlington Industries' family life.  Both Mom and Granddaddy worked for them for several years.  Can you tell which one Mom is?

What about in this one?

(She's the older daughter in case you needed help!)  Grandmama loved her children, grandchildren, and great grandchild more than just about anything in the entire world!

These pictures of my grandparents are the ones they sent each other while they were still students at the University of North Carolina and the University of South Carolina.  Grandmama looks like a movie star!

This is my absolute favorite.  I believe she was about 11 years old in this picture, but that curly hair and those crystal blue eyes are just beautiful!

Special thanks to Dad, who followed me all around A.C. Moore as I gathered supplies, and to Bekah, who drove me to more craft stores, painted the Chi Omega letters, and helped attach the photo corners!  I could never thank you enough for being there for my family and me despite your crazy schedule. 

I had never seen most of these pictures before, so you can imagine that most people hadn't seen them, either!  It warmed my heart that they loved looking at them so much, but what I loved more was that they all got a chance to remember Grandmama in her best days, of which she had so many. 

We are all so very blessed to have known her.