Thinking about my Grandma Swanson

From the time when Quinn was just days old, I have been singing a song to her that my grandma sang to me whenever I spent the night at her house. It was strange - I hadn't thought about that song in years - probably 20, at least - until I was struggling to think of lullabies to sing to my new baby girl. I was in the rocker one night, and some of the words came back... "and it stopped short, never to go again, when the old man died." What was that song? I remember Grandma singing it to me... what was it? Something about a grandfather clock... that's it! "My Grandfather's Clock!" Well, of course I couldn't remember any other words and even the melody was fuzzy. So I went online and voila - in no time at all, I found the lyrics and melody to the very same song that was sung to me so long ago. Two things happened - all of the words came back to me, and I realized that there were several verses that my grandma never sang - at all. So it took me forever to learn and remember all 4 verses because I'd always skim the paper when I was doing something else. When it was time to turn the light out and sing to my little munchkin, all of those words escaped me.

It's been almost 2 years now and I still sing that song to Quinn just about every night. I always get very nostalgic when I'm in there singing. It makes me feel much closer to a woman who helped raise me, and to whom I haven't talked to in almost 17 years. My grandma died 10 days after my 18th birthday, on February 18th, 1991. I can't believe it's been that long. So my daughter has brought my grandmother and I back together in the most precious way... through a song that I once loved as a child.

Earlier this week Quinn discovered my grandma's old rocking chair - the very same one she used to rock me in. I snapped this picture with a very warm heart. I don't know if anyone had that chair before my grandma, but at least 4 generations of the Swanson Family have sat in it now...

Me and my closest friends!