A simple life indeed
Joanne Lane
My grandmother, Hanora Lane, lived a simple life. She had simple interests and simple pleasures. That one word, simple, summed up her whole life. She lived frugally and worked hard for everything she earned. Her life was about survival. She was a fighter, a battler and had such strength of spirit you were often both in awe of her and frustrated by her.
Born: 6th June 1914, Ballydesmond, County Kerry, Ireland
Died: 4th September 1996, Brisbane, Australia
Aged: 82
Arrived England: 1938
Only child born: 13th March 1946
Emmigrated to Australia: 1980
Interests: feeding the cat and chickens, delivering the local newspaper,
deliberately turning off her neighbours hot water and chopping up their
plants
A SIMPLE LIFE INDEED
by Peter Lane (son)
And the chooks have gone off lay
Since that sad September day and the
Cat no longer waits at noon,
In hope of grandma coming soon
for they heard the people say
`grandma's gone away'
And we no longer hear her chuckle as she feeds her favourite pets
Or hear her shoes come clonking up the steps
The Westside News remains unfolded
The paths remain unswept
It seems everything is just,
Just a little unkempt
A Simple Life Indeed
that taught me right from wrong
Run the race of life
But always finish strong
This was a woman under five feet high and that's really pretty small
But to me her fighting spirit made her mighty tall
Until at last
The Master's Call
My grandmother was a strange woman whom I both understood and was greatly confused about. The hardness of her earlier life marked the rest of her years. At times she was bitter and rude, and at other times she was the sweetest, kindest elderley lady I knew and there was nothing we could do wrong in her eyes. I am happy to note these "other times" became increasingly more frequent in her last years. My brother and I (her only grandchildren) were seen with few faults, and her own son, my dad, was seen as almost perfect. I remember her daily concern for him even weeks after he had a minor operation recently. A mother's love. I also remember things like the phrases she used, the way she threw back her head to laugh, the way she looked at you with her blue eyes. She was so special and we have lost some of our heritage and sense of family without her... our identity. My family has grown closer since her death and I believe we have realised afresh the importance of valuing each other while we are still together. It is so easy to take each other for granted. Thankyou Nora for the memories - we love you, miss you and will never forget you but know you're at rest with Jesus.
Jo
You can send email to Joanne at [email protected]
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