Stephanie's Calendar

Here is the latest portrait in my ONE Project.  This one features the wonderful Stephanie Rinks and her grandmother's calendar.  Read on and enjoy!

*****

My maternal grandmother (I called her "Nanny") was like a second mother to me. She lived with us for many years when I was growing up, and helped raise me. We had a really special relationship.

Nanny always had a taped-together calendar from 1974 in which she kept her important dates and addresses. It was ever-present on her desk and she used it daily for as long as I could remember to send birthday and other cards to her friends.

Nanny passed away in 2012, and I asked my mother if I could keep the calendar as a memento. Heartbroken from her passing, I didn't look at the calendar for several months after her death. When I did, I realized that it was much more than an old calendar.

The year 1974 was the year that my grandpa, Nanny's husband, died of a sudden heart attack, leaving her as a widow at only 50 years old. He was her world, and she was devastated by his passing. In her calendar, she had journaled events and her feelings after his passing. She also had lots of notes and clippings tucked into the pages of the calendar. It revealed so much about her to look through her handwritten notes and to see what things were really special to her. Something that started off as a memento that reminded me of Nanny, turned into a peek into things I never knew about her. The calendar is one of my most precious possessions.

‍