Faith

This is for my grandmother, Ann DeMichael, who believed.  Her faith was the same regardless of her religion.  When she fell in love with my grandfather and married him, she became Catholic (she was born Lutheran), but she often told me, "It doesn't matter what religion you are.  God listens to everyone."  I am certain that he listened to her, though she didn't always get what she prayed for.  It distressed her deeply that religion divided my family; she rightly believed that if your religion turned you against your family, there was something flawed about it.

She was full of life.  She was still going out dancing well into her 80s, always keeping busy, because she believed that when you stop being involved with life, you start to die, whether you're 20 or 90. 

And she was the most selfless person I know.  If faith without works is dead, hers was alive and well, and it outlived her... every one of us who was touched by her life continues to be enriched by her constant giving and the openness of her heart.  December 31 was her birthday... she'd have been 99 this past year, but she only made it to 98.  If there is a heaven, I am glad she knew the way there.

Thank you, Gram, for the faith you gave me.  It's not the same as yours, but your faith will inspire mine, always.