Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 117574 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 588(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117574 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 588(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
“You’re reaching, Charlotte.”
“I’m not. Keep watching. And turn up the sound. Listen.”
For a long moment, we watch my family’s activities below—events that would seem highly mundane to me, if Grandma were still alive. But in this context, viewing never-before-seen images of my grandmother, so soon after her passing, and from a time when she was still spry, lively, and healthy, is bringing tears to my eyes.
I wipe my eyes and take a deep breath. And when I’m just about to say, “What is it I’m supposed to see and hear?”, a male voice murmurs from behind the camera, “Are you the one moving in today, or is it one of the others?” As he says it, the camera zooms in on my grandmother’s happy form, who at that precise moment is throwing her head back and laughing hysterically with my mother. The male voice murmurs, “Gosh, I sure hope it’s you.”
“Skeevy,” I pronounce, even as my heart is bursting at the sight of my happy grandmother having a belly laugh with my mother.
“Sweet,” Charlotte counters. “Keep watching and keep an open mind.”
My scowl softens and then turns into a genuine smile, as Grandma bursts out laughing again, along with Mom. “Those two were always laughing like that,” I say. “My mother always says her mom was the best mom, ever. And I always tell her, ‘Makes sense. You obviously learned from the best.’”
“Oh, Auggie.””
“She was a fantastic grandmother to Max and me, too. So generous and fun. A total blast to hang out with. I loved her so much.” I could go on and on, which is what I did at her funeral when I gave the eulogy, in order to give my heartbroken mother a break. When forced to summarize the incomparable Althea Martin, since eulogies aren’t supposed to last three hours, I told the packed audience in the church two months ago: “Althea was the kindest, silliest, most magnetic person you could ever hope to meet. The type of person who never met a stranger. Everyone who met Althea Martin instantly felt like her best friend.” It was all the truth. Everyone loved Althea Martin. And how could they not? She was always laughing from her belly. Always telling the best stories and listening to yours like it was the best she’d ever heard. She was constantly breaking into her patented silly songs and even sillier dances, even in public. Especially in public. She could make any stranger in her orbit, even the grumpiest ones, break into wide smiles. She was a cartoon character come to life.
And the best part? Grandma’s golden heart matched her sunny disposition. She was the one who introduced me to volunteering at animal shelters and got me hooked. She was the one who went to homeless shelters to feed total strangers on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve after Grandpa died, rather than hanging out with Mom, Max, and me. That’s the reason we started having two of both those holidays. One with Grandma, and another for the calendar. And, of course, Grandma’s the one who rescued the little ball of anxious fur who’s now sitting on my lap this very minute, missing his favorite person, ever so much.
In the video, Grandma does a little dance, as Max and I walk by with her beloved dining room table—the one sitting in her condo now—and behind the camera, the male voice chuckles at her exuberance.
“Well, that’s not creepy,” I say sarcastically.
“It’s not. I mean, yes, it would be, without the rest. But keep an open mind and keep watching. Lloyd didn’t have any friends or family left at this point. He never went outside—and inside, he was drowning in stacks and piles of useless stuff. And then he saw your pretty, vivacious grandma, moving into his building, and laughing and dancing with people she obviously adored, and I think maybe, the very sight of her, and the obvious love she had with her family, lit a teeny-tiny little fuse inside him. It made him smile and chuckle. It gave him hope. I’d bet anything watching Althea laughing and dancing around, while her hunky grandsons moved her in and her daughter cracked jokes with her, was the first time that poor man had cracked a smiled in ten fucking years. No wonder he wanted to memorialize the moment. That’s what this video is about—Lloyd feeling the urge to laugh and smile for the first time in ten years. It’s not meant to be something creepy about your grandma. He’s a guy who always memorialized the happiest of occasions in his life, so he memorialized this one, too.” Charlotte motions to the box of cassettes. “That’s what’s on all of these, Auggie. I’ve watched them all. Some on double speed. And they’re all filled with memories of a happy life. The family Lloyd loved and adored. I think seeing your vivacious grandma made him smile and remember a flicker of what it felt like to love and be loved.” Charlotte’s crying as she speaks by now. Clearly, she’s highly invested in all of this.