Holidays bring back memories of my parents and grandparents, and how much they are missed. So many wonderful Christmas’ with my parents and the two sets of grandparents. We were blessed that my sisters and our children lived within close distance so we usually all celebrated together. My grandparents weren’t so blessed to be close to all their children and grandchildren, but most of those who lived within 50 miles made a point to gather together. Fellowship with my many cousins was a blessing and created memories I will never forget. How I wish for those great times once again.

Recently I was asked if I had met and known my great-grandparents. The youth today are fortunate as times have changed. Many have their great-grandparents and enjoy their company. I was not so fortunate. I was young when my great-grandmother Boyles died, and her husband had died many years earlier. My Granny Boyles’ mother, Nora, had died before I was born, and her father Charles died when I was very young. My great-grandfather, Grandmother Daisy’s father, William Tell, and her mother, Ruth, both had died late in life but I never knew them as they lived in western Kansas and never traveled. My grandfather Heskett’s father died early in life but his mother, Mary (Callahan), lived a long life, first in Kansas and then later in California.

Though I never met Grandmother Mary, I felt like I knew her. I could tell my mother loved her dearly as they would write back and forth to each other. She’d send photos of herself and her daughters who also lived near her. Great-Grandmother Mary gave my mother a cookbook as a wedding gift and Mother treasured that book. I learned through my mother and Mary’s letters, she was a Christian woman. She often shared scriptures and her spiritual thoughts. I believe she was a strong woman. She lost her husband early in his life and she was left with four young children to raise in the vast western ranchland in Kansas. She would later marry again, and though they moved back to Jewell County for a time, they decided to make a big move to California. Later, my mother was given Mary’s family Bible. Thankfully Mother gifted the Bible on to me. I treasure it as it has several of her favorite verses marked and her family’s births and marriage dates recorded in the middle pages.

In recent years, I’ve completed a lot of family research. Though I never had the chance of fellowshipping with my great-grandparents, I believe I learned about them and now know them. If you still have your grandparents and great-grandparents with you, appreciate them and learn from them.