When I was little, Grandma would take me folk dancing. I think I was the only little girl who went. I really loved wearing the long skirts and how they twirled around, especially the feather skirt. There were a few songs that I liked in particular, I’m sure Grandma has them written down somewhere but I remember one was called “Barefoot Girl”. I wrote this before finding the picture below… She would always ask them to play these songs for me.
Grandma would also take me out to dinner on occasion when I was little – just her and I. I remember the restaurant had a train that went around the whole place way up high on the walls, I loved that. I also remember the sandwiches and how they were served with toothpicks stuck in them. There was something so novel about that to me. I’m not sure how often we did this but it’s a very fond memory.
I lived with Grandma for a few months after I graduated from UF. I am so happy I spent this time with her. I always say this was the healthiest I ever ate. Grandma would always prepare very well balanced meals – protein, some type of carb, veggies plus usually a salad, sometimes with stuff from her garden. We usually had melon after dinner. Then a cup of tea with honey and maybe some Stella D’oro Margherite cookies before bed. We would sometimes play cards with Auntie Evie and Uncle Lenny too.
One funny thing when I lived with her, there was a hurricane coming and we got a little concerned about tornadoes. So I pulled two twin mattresses into the hallway and we both slept on the floor in the hallway!! This may have been Aunt Barbara’s suggestion though not sure haha.
I loved eating on her front porch. I would sometimes read out there too. I have the most wonderful memories growing up going to her house in the summers, and especially of dinners on that front porch. In my memory, I can hear the creaky floorboards and the swing of the back screen door, smell the fragrant summer gardens, feel the sticky helicopter seeds on my nose, catch fireflies at dusk, walk to Bagel Train for bagels or to the library no longer there to get books and VHS, play ping pong in the basement with Grandma, my brothers, and cousins or play in the staircase/closet (Sardines anyone?), and see Grandma walking out the door to welcome us whenever we arrived.
I remember Grandma telling me about how she loved being a snowbird. How when she got to Florida she welcomed the flat land and expansive sky, but then when she went back to New York she loved seeing the mountains. Something to appreciate about her home no matter where she is.
Lucy Turns 100! 