Geena May Texas 4000

My dad’s mom, who goes by Judy, passed away from her second battle against breast cancer this past March. The first time she was diagnosed, I was too young to realize how serious it was. I knew that she wore a wig because she was sick and her hair would fall out, but I didn’t realize how close she actually was to death. I am eternally grateful of how strong she fought because her will power gave me countless more years and memories with her! Over her years in remission, I was able to grow closer to my grandma and began to understand all of the saint-like qualities that she truly embodied. She was the glue that held my dad’s side of the family and many others together because she cared about the wellbeing of each and every person that she ever interacted with! There has not been a time that I can remember where she did not have someone living in her house because they were in a time of need. She treated each and every grandchild and great grandchild as if they were the most important person in the world. All of my cousins will agree that each adventure that she took us on were one in a million. She always stayed so positive, even when in times of distress. I remember one time when we flew to Disney world, this guy with a ton of cardboard boxes cut in front of us on the escalator at the airport and then dropped them all at the bottom. Unfortunately my grandma fell over them onto the metal grates at the bottom of the escalator. Even though her entire leg was one big black and blue mark and she was apparently millimeters away from shattering her knee, she never let that deter her from making sure that we had an amazing time at Disney world. She was able to get an electric wheelchair and ride around the park with us. She used it as an advantage to go in the handicap line on the rides and she never held us back. In the end I think it was more fun and gave us some great stories to tell. We also found out that she should never ride in an electric wheelchair again because she ran over my foot with it and also off a curb, almost crashing into a kiosk. Lesson learned.

I wish I could mention all of the amazing memories that I had with my grandma, but that would take pages and pages. Because she was such an integral part in my life, I am dedicating day 6 and day 70 to her. I am dedicating day 70 to her because she had an amazing sense of adventure, and what a better day to dedicate to her then the completion of my ride across the continent. I dedicate day 6 to her because it will be my birthday, and although she won’t be able to see me transition out of my teenage years, I want to feel as close to her as I can on this day.

Even though the glue to our family is now missing, we will still hold strong because of the lasting impact that my grandma had on all of us and the traits that she has passed on to her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She will always have a very special place in my heart.