STEPHANIE MORK

My grandma Mork passed away about a week and a half ago.  Unknowingly when she passed away, I was vacationing in one of the most beautiful places in Minnesota – The Boundary Waters.  As we were driving home after hearing the news, I couldn’t help but think how she would be put off that we cut our vacation short because of her.  She loved life and didn’t want others to be concerned with her or worry about her.

When I got home, I was looking through my books and found one that she had given me this year but I never actually read.  It’s called, “Now is the Time: 170 Ways to Seize the Moment.”

How can I best honor my beautiful grandmothers life? I think this book sums it up very well and I want to share with you a few of my favorites:

Now is the time…

to get a good night’s sleep (this is classic grandma Mork)

Break the cycles:
of working late; mindless TV; nights out. 
Reconnect with your body.
Show it some respect.
Recharge your batteries.
Savor the results.

Now is the time…

to unleash your imagination

The power of your mind is virtually unlimited and largely untapped.
With imagination we can create new worlds and improve old ones.
We can live our wildest dreams and dream our wildest lives.

Now is the time…

to choose freedom

Too often we make our own cages:
    of the mind, or the heart.
Or we allow technology to make them for us.  
But we have the keys to unlock them.
We only need the will to use them.
Unlock your heart, love freely.
Unlock your mind, live freely.

Now is the time…

to chase your dream

We make our own limitations:
    through self doubt; fear; and conformity.
But we can also expand our horizons.
We can push through the barriers, real and imagined.
If you have a dream,
   give it a chance.
Empower yourself.

This is by no means an exhaustive list.  There are 166 more ways listed in this book of how to seize the moment that are valuable to take to mind and heart, but I thought these represented my grandma well.

These words belong to the author of the book, Patrick Lindsay (highly recommend).  Thank you sir for words that stir all kinds of thoughts and emotions. Thank you grandma for standing behind everything I have accomplished and want to accomplish.  Thank you for showing me how to put family first, love Jesus and be humble and kind.

The thing about memories is that they don’t change.  I have so many memories about my grandma that are bursting with the joy of Christmas; the sweetness of homemade applesauce; and the connectedness of countless cups of coffee with an over talkative 2o something granddaughter (me).  I will treasure these memories and these words that remind me of her for the rest of my little life.

She was a listener, master chef, kind, strong, humble and basically everything I want to be as a grandma and a woman.  She will be missed.