Mutual Love and Admiration
Ray and I have enjoyed meeting a precious, godly woman during his pulmonary rehab. I’ll call her Doris. Our friendship had a surprising beginning one afternoon when she noticed my shoes. I can’t tell you how many conversations I have had with perfect strangers who have asked about my shoes, simple flats with straps that cross the front of my feet. They feel so good that over time I have collected these low-priced shoes in seven colors and rarely wear anything else.
In no time that first day, Doris was telling me about her grandchildren. She said that for their birthdays she takes them where they like to go. Her face beamed when she told me about the time they decided that the best way to celebrate Grandma’s birthday was to do the same for her.
For a reasonable fee, I can make Ray’s rehab time my gym time and use all of the equipment. One day last week Doris and I saw each other on the walking track. She said, “You have a free dozen donuts at Ralph’s.” She said that I could go there and pick out any kind I like.” I was humbled and thrilled. Ralph’s Donuts are a Cookeville, Tennessee, legend. Our family loves them. Their ads are fun. When astronauts traveled to the back of the moon recently, a social media post informed the world that humans were now farther from Ralph’s than they had ever been in world history.
When Doris finished rehab that day last week, she explained that one of her daughters and her husband are the most recent owners of Ralph’s. It was no surprise when she began talking about her grandchildren again. She said, “I don’t want to brag but my grandchildren are light.” She said that as the world gets darker and darker, they are going to be light. At this point, I thought that Doris might like to know about our work in Notgrass History, so I gave her my card and told her what we do. She said, “My other daughter and her husband operate New Colossus.” New Colossus is a local two-day-a-week tutorial. “They use our curriculum,” I said.
Five of our grandchildren were to spend the night with us two days later, so I decided that was the perfect time to pick up my FREE Ralph’s Donuts! Rather than going inside, I drove up to the take-out window where a neat, pretty, polite teenage girl waited to take my order. Rather sheepishly, I told her that I had met a sweet lady at rehab who told me I could have a dozen free donuts. She lit up when I began telling her about my sweet friend from rehab and she realized I was talking about her grandmother.
If you ever get to Ralph’s (they’re open Tuesday-Saturday), my favorites are the Butter Twist and old-fashioned, but every donut I have ever eaten from Ralph’s was delicious and, according to Doris, they will never sell one that was not made that day.
These grandchildren’s choices (from top to bottom) were cream-filled, old-fashioned, custard-filled (I accidently turned one upside down), and . . .
. . . Ralph’s signature Butter Twist, a local favorite since Ralph (who founded the shop along with his wife Evelyn) baked the first one in 1966.
As Doris’ granddaughter and I chatted about her at the window, I could see plainly that the love and admiration go both ways between grandmother and granddaughter. In my experience, both grandmother and granddaughter light up the world.
. . . for you were formerly darkness,
but now you are Light in the Lord;
walk as children of Light . . .
Ephesians 5:8
. . . so that you will prove yourselves
to be blameless and innocent,
children of God above reproach
in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation,
among whom you appear as lights in the world . . .
Philippians 2:15