Grandma’s Legacy
Today marks the seven year anniversary of losing my grandma, Evelyn Theresa Finn. She lived 91 amazing years and had a very full life. Today offers me a chance to reflect on her remarkable life and all that I learned from her. My grandma was the most fierce, witty, sassy, go-getter human I’ve ever known. I grew up with a lot of powerful women around me, and she was definitely one of them. As a younger kid, I don’t think I appreciated my grandma for everything she was. She was definitely the “tough love” kind of person, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to respect and appreciate so much about her.
My grandma traveled to so many countries. Many of those trips were after my grandfather passed, with one of her best friends. Literally nothing stopped this woman. She had a double knee replacement and that didn’t stop her. She woke up in the early hours of the morning to deliver the paper to her friends where she lived. She played bridge and tennis often. She was part of the red hat society and had quite a full social calendar. She loved all of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She often showed up at our house, pulling weeds out of our gardens or replanting something. Sometimes I would get home from school and would see grandma outside working in the dirt or she would just show up in our house, ready to get to work.
She wasn’t always the lovey-dovey type, but her love was felt through action. She was always there, always present, always willing to help out. As I’ve thought about the legacy she left, I think there were some things I didn’t appreciate about her at the time. But as you mature, you begin to realize what really matters in life. I learned so much from my grandma. She was super smart. Although her family was important to her, and she had a very full household of five kids, her life wasn’t only about her role as a mom. She was involved in her community, she kept up with what was going on in the world, and she was not shy about sharing her opinions. She had a kind of fire within her that I see in myself — one that can sometimes put people off, but I think more importantly, speaks to the kind of full, passionate life that she lived. She appreciated and loved her home and her home state of Jersey, but she understood her role as a citizen of the world — interested and curious about learning about other people, places and cultures. She acknowledged that there was a lot more to learn about the world than her own narrow perspective. As a younger person, I didn’t understand how rare and special it was that she traveled so much in her life and was so open to learning new things. When she traveled, she kept handwritten journals about everything she experienced — what she ate, how the flight went, conversations she had with local people, and many silly things too. While she lived such a big and full life, she didn’t ever miss an opportunity to notice and document the little things. What a beautiful practice. She had some serious creative talent — always painting, rearranging and decorating our houses, finding beautiful pieces of art or antiques. She knew how to build and maintain a garden like no other.
The lady really could do it all. Now well into adulthood, I see how special that was. I miss my grandma a lot. But so many of her qualities (even the ones that I didn’t love as a kid), live within me. I’m so grateful to have learned from her what it means to be a powerful, successful and intelligent woman who also loves their family deeply. She did it all. I miss you, Grandma. Your legacy will live on forever ❤️
