Nana

Nana left today. Penny and I stopped by last night for a tearful good-bye. With her health issues we don’t know if we will see her again. When we left, her daughter Jody walked with us out to the car. She gave Penny and me a big hug and through her tears said, “You know how I feel about you guys.” She paid us a big complement. She said that she found herself a husband just like me because she liked the relationship Penny and I have.

Nana is the head of he McClure clan, our surrogate extended family here. Since neither Penny nor I have family close by we were fortunate to have the McClures around.

The McClures came into our lives in 1973 by way of a friend at work, Charlie Yates. He was renting a small house on Poquito Bayou and his landlord, Grandmarnie McClure was looking for someone to rent a small cottage they had at 3 Poquito Rd. They wanted safe renters and since I was getting married he thought it would be a fine place to spend my first years of marriage.

I was able to get out of my lease on my apartment on Don Drive and the McClures rented the cottage to me for the same amount I had paid for it, $130/ month-for a waterfront cottage!

Penny and I spent our “honeymoon” moving in to 3 Poquito. Penny took on the task of watching over Grandmarnie.

About 6 months later Nana Papa Bear Jody, Ricky and Kelly moved down. Nana’s daughter, Meme was already in the area having married Tommy Nelson. Rita was off at school. Penny immediately became part of the family as only Penny can do.

On our first anniversary we found a bottle of champagne and a card on our kitchen table when we got home that the McClures left us. Penny and I used their Jon boat and I fished and swam in the bayou. Coffee, our dog liked being on the water. I had a garden in the back yard, and Penny began her adventure into breeding Himalayans. Many Saturday evenings everyone would get together and we would play volleyball in the driveway. Jody became like a daughter to Penny. We became as close to being family as possible without actually being related.

We lived there 2 years until we bought our house on Rodney St. We would come by weekly for dinner and volleyball. Karen and Christy came along. For Christy, Penny had to stay in bed with her legs elevated for the last month of pregnancy and have somebody with her. Nana graciously let us stay with her and she watched Penny while I was at work. She propped up the foot end of Penny’s bed on bricks to keep her legs elevated.

Poquito Bayou was still available to us any time and when Karen and Christy got old enough they joined in the volleyball games. Whenever we needed someone to watch our pets Meme was there. We celebrated all of their birthdays-Nana usually made angel food ice cream cake topped with her caramel sauce. Christmas was absolute bedlam. They didn’t wait until the morning to open their gifts so we always left with our gifts in big plastic bags.

Nana always had animals, cats dogs birds and the whole family has carried on the tradition. It is normal to have at least 4 dogs over there whenever we visit. Eventually they built another house further down Poquito road and Grandmarnie moved into the house where Charlie Yates used to live.

Saturday nights at Nana’s were a regular event now. We would go over early in the summer and swim. In late August there were Scuppernong grapes to feast on growing on their fence.

Grandmarnie died, Papa bear died. Karen and Christy got a lesson that I never did growing up, that death is part of life.

All the kids have grown up and scattered. Nana’s house is up for sale. Penny and I will have to learn to lean on our neighbors when we need support.
Ricky and Tracy drove Nana up to NC in a big Winnebago so she won’t be stressed too much by the trip. We just got a call – they made it safely.