I did not know my grandmother very well but from what I’ve heard she possessed a talent that I would give an arm and a leg for.  That expression was a favorite of my mother’s.  Nana did not appear to be bothered by anything.  She maintained her almost-regal smile all the time.  Even when all hell was breaking lose at the Monaghan family dinner table Nana didn’t flinch.  I knew she had bad hearing but come on, when that table was in full swing I don’t know how she could stand it.  On the other hand, even at that young age I was beside myself at the commotion.  I am a well known worrier.  Some people think I am emotional.  Ok, I’ll admit I’m emotional.  When my Irish is up, you know it.  Mother used to say “Mary Elizabeth, you are transparent as silk.”  She liked to use expressions.  And, yes, I am that transparent.

Nana’s name was Agnes.  She named my mother Agnes.  Thank God that buck stopped there.  Agnes Number One was born one of three children to PopPops K and his wife Kate, who were financially comfortable.  It’s too bad his buck(s) stopped there.  From what we can piece together Nana and her brother and sister had very pleasant lives.  She and her family did a lot of travelling.  One of my cousin’s greatest finds while sifting through some old family heirlooms were two journals from our grandmother’s transatlantic trip.  In Nana’s beautiful script she had been very detailed about her sightseeing, but she consistently made references to the young men she had met while walking on the promenade, in the dining room or playing various deck games. My cousin and I firmly believe that PopPops K had funded a meet-a-man vacation.  Years later, Nana spent summers in Stone Harbor and brought the good silver from home, as we found in a letter she wrote to her husband who was at home.  By the way, she met him in Philadelphia, not on the cruise.

My memories of her are from a time period when she lived in an apartment across from our home in Lansdale.  She moved out of the city when her area started getting a little rough.  I loved Nana’s apartment.  She had beautiful furniture.  When I slept over I got to sleep in a fancy bed in her guest room.  That bed and its matching highboy are in my guest room now and another one of Nana’s granddaughter sleeps in it when she visits me.  Nana had a parakeet which had better food stuck between the wires of its cage than our birds ever got.  She bought brown edged wafer cookies in fancy boxes.  She had a color TV!  After school me and my BFF went to her place and watched Dark Shadows in living color.  In the summertime Nana sent me to the corner store and told me to buy whatever I wanted for lunch.  I usually returned from Orville’s with Stroehman’s Merry Go Round bread and chicken roll from which she would make me a sandwich.  She did not go easy on the mayo.  She put in a piece of lettuce which was a foreign food to me.

I suspect that Nana appeared to be oblivious to everything because she could.  She was well-cared for by her family and was blessed to be able to live a very comfortable life.  She wore nice clothes and had gorgeous jewelry.  She married a good man and they had three children who were smart and accomplished and grew up to be wonderful parents.  Nana was very artistic and painted beautifully.  She had many friends.  In her older years she vacationed in Cape May at the Marquis Hotel, playing canasta and bridge with her friends.  I think she was a very content person.

I guess you can see why my cousin has an expression she uses when it’s time to calm down and de-frazzle.  Channel Nana, she says.  That woman knew how to chill.  I certainly could learn a thing or two about relaxation from the legend she left with us.  Maybe I’ll practice with the silly things that bother me like when Steve leaves the outside lights on.  When those biggies happen like MRI’s or doctor appointments, I hope I remember to Channel Nana.

Channel Nana – it’s good for your soul.