My Reason to Fight

Tomorrow is New Years Day and with comes what would have been my Grandmother’s 96th birthday. Nana lived 94 and a half short years filled with 4 children, 11 grand children and now 6 great grandchildren with one on the way. She is only one woman but her shadow is cast long and wide across three generations. Although she has been involved, influenced and affect so many lives, I can speak only through my eyes. I’ll try to keep them dry.
By now you can probably guess Nana was more than just a grandmother. Sure, she did the usual grandmother stuff. She would powder our bottoms after a bath and she’d even loss her temper and get “cross” with us. But she’d also sit and talk in length about the Red Sox, Celtics, Bruins and Patriots with us as if she was one of the guys. In many ways Nana was one of the guys. She didn’t put up with any of our crap. She’d occasionally surprised us with a well timed put down that put us right in our place, or if a bully (or one of my brothers) were to bother me Nana would always ask “Well why the hell you let that knucklehead get away with it?”
Nana had kept her hair the same fiery red years after nature decided against it. A sign of vitality, the hair color captured her essence, her ambition and more importantly her spark. This subtle act was one of the many unspoken lessons Nana would become famous for. She showed us it’s okay to be your own person and not let anyone or anything define who you are. “You are your decision” she taught us. Her hair eventually faded to a pure white, signifying the angel we all knew she was.
Along with the importance of faith, family and of course math, the message Nana emphasized the most was to fight. I know it would have been near impossible to disappoint her but if I ever gave up or quit I know I would let her down. This was demonstrated the multiple times Nana visited Melrose-Wakefield Hospital with what she would call an “inconvenience” of another heart surgery. Her strength and fear of losing was apparent in every breath she took and inspired everyone she ever spoke to. She was who she wanted to be, not what society’s definition of an elderly grandmother was. One Easter Sunday less than ten years ago Nana was sitting in a rocking chair with her wine glass empty. I asked her if I could get her some more. Nana winked as a smile of menacing school girl grew on her face then took off across the house to refill her own glass. This is who Nana is. A fighter.
Every fight has to come to an end though. And only one person could call this fight. It wasn’t going to be a doctor and it certainly wasn’t going to be a Devine decision. Nana was going to go when she wanted to. She was the Matriarch of what she considered to be the greatest family, and this family was great only because of her. She did her job. She raised all of us in the same way with the same beliefs. There was nothing more she could have done. The round ended on June 15th, 2008 but fight goes on every day. Nana lives in the hearts of us all. Every time I think about maybe taking the easy way and quitting I feel Nana’s disappointment and that’s enough to drive me to the finish line. I fight everyday and I fight for Nana.

I love you, Nana. Happy Birthday.