Where it all came from…

For as long as I can remember, I have loved all things home. As a little girl at the tender age of five, I vividly remember being at my nana’s house and rearranging my bedroom furniture. Too little to pull the dresser to where I wanted it placed, I would sit on the floor with my back pushed against the dresser and use my legs as the driving force to move it. I’m not sure how many five years olds would rather rearrange a bedroom over playing but to me that was what I enjoyed. My nana encouraged my curiosity and each time I came over, she had a house project to help with or would let me rearrange framed photos and vases she had on display. As a parent now, I realize what she was doing. She was grooming me to find enjoyment and possibly a career that was centered around what sparked joy for me.

My nana was a hard-ass working woman, who was ahead of her time back in the day. She was one of 9 children and grew up in a two bedroom home in Hampton Twp., Michigan. Her living quarters with her other sisters was in the attic with bed frames made out of cinder blocks. There was no heat in the attic, so her father had cut a hole in the ceiling by the wood burner downstairs to allow heat to rise and keep them warm in the winter. They would burn whatever they could…sometimes tires. I couldn’t imagine the smell. In the hot summer, they would spray the roof down with the hose to cool it down so they could sleep more comfortably…it really didn’t do much. She owned two pairs of shoes. One for church and one for school. When she worked in the field picking potatoes, she had to go bare feet as to not ruin the only pairs she had, which where hand-me-downs.

Growing up, it was drilled into my head that people will see you for your hard work and how you keep your home. I’m not talking about having the best of the best, because she didn’t have that until much later in life. I’m talking about how well you clean and present what you have. Have you ever been given a toothbrush to clean the baseboards? I have. My nana put me to work very young when I came over. There was playtime and work time. She paid me for the work completed and she chanted over and over throughout my childhood and even still to this day, “if you want nice things, you have to work your ass off and be a good, honest person.”

Her dining room is probably one of my favorite rooms in her house. To me it is so elegant and beautiful. It’s extremely Traditional English style and I love every bit of it. Knowing where she came from, it is a display to me how she worked so hard to change the early life she had. My love of homes, decor, and hard work all started with her. I’m utterly grateful for her patience with me and letting me do what I loved when I was little. How many other grandmothers would let their grandchildren move 100 year old antiques and just rearrange the living room for fun? I’m not sure the answer but I’m so happy she was game for it.
I love you, truck loads and truck loads Nana.