Doris Azalea Jones Lee was just "Nanny" to us. I'm her oldest granddaughter. When Nanny passed in 2006, it cut me to the core more than I expected. She had been in declining health for a number of years but when the end finally came, I found myself unable to function. Literally. It was as if someone had taken the backbone out of our family...our matriarch. Fearless leader!! She would laugh at me if she heard me say that but she would have also secretly treasured that notion as well! Nanny was the last of our grandparents to go and yet she was first in a long line of memories. There isn't a room in my home to this day, that doesn't have something of hers in it. She loved to do needlepoint and was extremely good at it. Pictures and pillows she made are priceless treasures to me and her great-grandchildren, Ashley and Michael. She could knit or crochet some of the most beautiful blankets and she could sew anything--all perfectly. This pales however, to her cooking! This woman could cook some of the best food you've EVER tasted! Home-made beef stronganoff was her specialty and our favorite. She cooked it and her home-made rolls and blackberry cobbler at almost every family gathering. There were so many things about my Nanny I treasure and remember....and the first "real" thing that pops into my mind is her wonderful laugh and smile. She had a great smile that lit up her face. When she laughed, she would usually toss her head back and laugh so hard that she couldn't stop laughing. She didn't have a loud, hearty laugh...it was soft and sweet...but totally funny. Who could make her laugh the most? Michael--her great-grandson....and he knew it too and I personally think he did things to make her laugh! She loved chasing him around, he would hide from her and when she found him, the giggling and tickling would start! She had a quick wit and at times a very sharp tongue, but she loved her family. Of this, I have no doubt. The miles separated us though and in time, so did families and careers. Isn't that always the case? You never see anyone you truly love as much as you'd like too...so Nanny filled her time and bridged the gap by creating beautiful things to give to us to fill our homes and to show her love for us. Nanny loved flowers...pretty things...and her many plants and her yard were a testament to her green thumb. There were many times I would get an envelope filled with seeds for me to plant things from her, in my own yard. She was a beautiful woman--both inside and out--to me. I was in a store about 2 months after she passed, and walked by a woman who had her back to me. As I walked by...everything...EVERYTHING...said it was Nanny standing there....from her smell...to her size, hair....you name it. I broke down in the store right then and there. No, I didn't go to her funeral. There are many personal reasons why. The main one? How do you actually say "good-bye" to the "last" one who was such an influence in your life? How do you stare at a cremation urn and "pretend" she's in there? I'm the oldest grandchild. My memories are much stronger...more in general...than those of my siblings. Nanny and I used to talk on the phone for hours...literally hours. In her final days...we didn't talk at all. She never was the same after Papa died. Her spirit went with him...just like a part of all of us did. As I write this, I see her. She's sitting in her rocking chair by the window--hoping Papa doesn't catch her smoking a cigarette--and she's smiling....tossing her head back and laughing...I hear that laugh....and once again...I catch myself wiping away tears. I miss you so much Nanny. RIP until we meet up again.