Maw Maw and Poppy (and Paw too)!

I just reread this after I published it and realized it is a little sad, so if you don't like sad, just read the first paragraph or 2.

So my grandma is not like most grandmas. Today we celebrated her 85th birthday. Tonight she learned how to "shoot wii" as she called it. Yesterday she bought a shirt and jacket from Express, not for me but for her. She drinks Caramel Latte's from Starbucks, drives an SUV and wears Prada and Michale Kors glasses. She drinks 4-5 cups of coffee a day and is a true southern bell. My grandma lived 1 mile from my house from the time I was 6 until June of this year. I saw her almost everyday for 12 years. Now she lives in the mountains and while I talk to her on the phone everyday, I only see her about once a month.

She is one of the strongest women I have ever met in my life. She has lost 2 husbands, a daughter and numerous friends now. Yet she doesn't complain about those things, she complains about hip pain (she's broken her hip twice and had 2 hip replacement surgeries) and being soar from walking around the mall all day. While she doesn't complain about those things, I know it's hard for her. She started taking a writing class and has recently written the story about her 2 loves.

She met Paw (Carl Doss) in college. See my family is not very good at being on time and Maw arrived late for her first class where she was forced to sit behind Paw. The second day of class, she arrived late and there were no seats left, so Paw gave her his seat and asked her out. The rest is kinda history about falling in love and wanting to spend their lives together. The funny thing about my grandma's 2 loves is they were great friends! You see, during this same time, Poppy (Charles Bond Blain) and his family moved in next door to my grandma in Johnson City Tennessee (I think this was about 1942). Well Poppy and Maw became best friends, they walked to school together everyday. Paw was away ( I think fighting in the war). Maw told Charlie all about Paw and how they were going to get married when Paw came back. Maw told Charlie how he and Paw would be great friends. Paw came back and Charlie and Maw and Paw all became inseparable.

During this time period, the draft for WWII was happening and it wasn't long before Poppy and Paw were drafted. Ironically, they were both drafted on the same day. (I am not sure why Paw was away at war for the first time and then got drafted again, this date was May 15, 1942) Poppy was on a medical ship that went to and from England with injured soldiers. His time in the service helped him decide he wanted to go to medical school and become a dentist. I am not sure what Paw did while in the service but on his first leave, he proposed to Maw and they got married. Since Maw couldn't be with Paw, they decided to have my aunt Linda so that Maw would not be at home by herself. Paw and Poppy both finished their time in the service and Poppy went to Georgia and then Tennessee to acquire his medical degree. Paw and Maw continued living in Johnson City and had 4 children, Linda, Carla (my mom), Henry and Grace. They lived there a while and then moved to Charlotte. In 1983 Paw died suddenly in the middle of the night. I was the only grandchild (of 10) to not meet this crazy man. I have only heard stories of him and cannot wait to meet him.

A few years after this happened, Maw went back and forth about going to her class reunion. Well finally her children convinced her to go. And low and behold guess who else was there?! None other but Charlie! Now Charlie lived in Atlanta and ran his own dental practice and Maw lived in Charlotte and worked at the hospital. They dated for a while and on June 13, 1987 (my 3rd birthday!) they got married in our backyard! Over the years, Charlie became Poppy. He was the only grandpa that I knew. He played outside with us, he always gave us candy (he even had a candy store in his basement for us), he was so kind and compassionate and caring. He taught us all so much. He treated Maw like she was the Queen. Poppy passed away about 10 months ago and it's sad to see Maw without him as I have no memories of her without him. The love that they had for each other was/is an example of compassion and patience and caring that has forever been ingrained in my mind. He taught us of unconditional love and what it means to serve others. He always put Maw and us first and he never complained about it. He truly is the kindest, most compassionate man I have ever met.