In Memory of My Babushka

My grandma passed away in her sleep last night. Her passing was not from COVID, but COVID will prevent me from traveling to her memorial, as the cases in Wisconsin are far too high. She was born in Poland, and because her husband was born of Polish parents, my mom is thus also Polish, and I'm half Polish.

When she was a little girl, she adopted a duck, and the duck would follow her everywhere. When Poland was invaded, she left, carefully, and was able to get across the enemy lines to where the Allies were, and was a nurse assistant in a hospital, where my Grandpa was recovering from an illness... And they fell in love, and moved back to the U.S.

They had a large family, by today's standards. My grandma was small, but she was strong. She cleaned proudly her house, and was always a good host, even when she was ill, she still would not let people do things for her.

In her 50's she started to have terrible sciatica pains. Her doctor said the way to get rid of it was to start to do sit ups. And so she did. At one time she was doing 200 sit ups a day, and continued this into her 80s... She finally started to only do 50 a day in her 90s, although for the past few years, she had been so sick that she stopped.... Yet even then, a few years ago, we thought she was going to pass, and she was on hospice care... Yet, they ultimately had to stop hospice, because it was clear she wasn't going any place yet.

But now she has gone. I have memories, and I can strive to do as many sit ups as she did... That is a good a goal to meet, to have the possibility of living as long and fulfilled as her.