Vol. 14, No. 3, Spring 2001

A Life Lived Fully

by Jacquelyn Ross

The kitchen was a mix of houseplants, knickknacks, calendars, grandchild art, and good humor. In a prominent corner hung a plaque with the legend, "No matter where I serve my guests, it seems they like my kitchen best." (True.) The aromas from her kitchen wrapped guests like a favorite blanket when they first stepped into the house. It would be five minutes, tops, before visitors would be sitting at the long kitchen table with a steaming cup of coffee and slice of fresh-baked fruit pie.

Marie Graham, my great aunt, was a force of nature. She was a fierce Yahtzee player—many a penny went to her side of the table during the marathon games after dinner. Her full-bodied laughter delighted us kids and she laughed often, sometimes when telling old family stories but also when recalling memorable segments of early Burt Reynolds movies. She set such a bountiful table, it was years before I learned that a number of the boxes and bottles in her pantry were empties that she kept in order to play "grocery store" with her granddaughter.

This Miwok woman was highly skilled in all the basics that led to a full table. She was an excellent clam-digger and fisherwoman. She loved the ocean and would haul heavy rocks up the coastal cliffs to have them near her as she watched the sea from her balcony. Marie was also a wonderful gardener, and on visits to her house, an exploration of the plants and flowers on the three levels of her hillside gardens was a special joy to me. Her Meyer lemon tree held a special fascination. In the cool ocean air of Jenner, this tree bore fruit completely out of proportion to its size.

Her berry patch filled with sweet, dark jewels in the summer. The patch bordered a ladder of dark, vine-strewn stairs. Although we kids used to tell scary stories while running up these stairs to the house, our hands would be juice-stained by the time we reached the top.

Aunt Marie passed away this January, and while we miss her dearly, she provided a lifetime of examples of how to live life generously and joyously. Children that grow up in the presence of lively, knowledgeable elders are privileged people, and I am grateful to count myself among this group.