My Family

A couple of posts ago an anonymous poster said they wanted to know more about my family. I thought I would dedicate this post to them.

My parents are Larry and Deanna Wright. They were born and raised in Robbins, Tennessee. It is a very small, rural town in Scott County, Tennessee. My dad has 8 brothers and sisters and was raised by his mother, after his father passed away when he was 9 years old. He is the second to youngest of the group. My Aunt Debbie, who posts comments, is the youngest. My mom has 3 brothers and sisters. They grew up on a farm, doing farm work and living off the land.

My sister, Heather, is younger than me - she turned 30 this year. She is a dental hygenist. She has been married to Ivan for 8 years. They have 2 kids (the same age as mine) Indy & Reichen. Heather and I have always - well since high school - been close. We had one of those piviotal moments back in the day... She was sitting at her lunch table and 3 older girls came up and started yelling at her for something she said. Danny Tran ran to me and said, "dude, some girls are trying to beat up your sister." I went right over and asked them what the problem was...apparently they decided there wasn't one. I know, I am so tough. From that point on, Heather and I have been pretty close. Her first boyfriend was a friend of mine from college. He wasn't a nice guy - sorry Heather. Oh, did I mention, Heather was a cheerleader in High School. A football cheerleader. And she was the captain. She is very pretty with blond hair and blue eyes. Yes, I grew up with Barbie. That's okay.

I get along well with my parents, although that has not always been the case. My mom and I fought a lot while I was a teen. I think it was all pretty normal stuff. My mom was pretty protective and suspicious of my actions. The truth is she was smart to be... We started getting along when I was around 24ish. Things have been great ever since. We still disagree about things but it doesn't turn out to be this big drama like it used to.

My mom and dad love the kids. My mom spoils them every chance she gets...trust me - tommorow is a big day. If Jude wants something he tells me to call Nana and tell her. Not Santa...Nana.

My grandparents have all passed away. My Grandma Wright was an amazing woman that touched so many lives. I always pray and ask God to make me a little bit like her. She was dirt poor but would give anything she owned away to help another person. We always joked that if someone broke into her house she would make them sit down and eat a meal before they left. She was a very good Christain woman. She loved God. I have one of her old Bibles and she always wrote stuff in it that happened. She wrote this paragraph about how she always lifted her hands and laughed during church. Someone asked her why she always did that. She told them it was because she loved the Lord. Simple enough??? She wasn't a great singer but I can't think of anything sweeter than my Grandma Wright singing Amazing Grace. I still cry when I hear that song because in my mind I hear her old weary voice singing it. She never judged a soul. Oh, and something else about her...She LOVED Bill Clinton. When his mother passed away, she sent him a card. When she turned 90 he sent her a card (it is a standard thing). She thought he was for the people and that is why she liked him. A couple of other things about my grandmother. She knew all these natural remedies for things. She knew which mushrooms were okay to eat and what herbs did what. She loved to pick blackberries. She always lit a candle on Christmas eve for her daughter, Amy, who passed away back in the 50's. My grandma was always old to me. She was 70 when I was born. She died on Thanksgiving day when she was almost 96. I found a story about her online. She is the "Miss Wright" referred to in the passage.

My mothers parents, Hurshel and Eva Norman, both passed away last year. My grandfather (Papaw), was a farmer. He worked outside on his tractor until he just couldn't anymore. He died a month later. He was also a good Christain man, who read his Bible each day. He fought in World War II. He was stationed in Guam. My Granny, she liked to sew. She made my sister and I lots of clothes when we were kids. She macramaed purses and quilted for us. She loved to go fishing. She and her friend, Derida, went fishing all the time. There is one thing you didn't have to worry about with my Granny - her telling you what she thought. If she thought it she said it. Sometimes it was very funny...other times not so funny. I sat there and listen to her tell my cousin he better wear a condom with the girl he was living with because she would get pregnant! Imagine hearing that from your Grandmother. She passed away on New Year's Day last year. She had been sick for a very long time.

I have lots of cousins, 28 including my sister and myself. I could tell you LOTS of stories about them but I will have to save those stories for another time.

Well, have a Happy Christmas Eve.