Words to live by

In my life, I have been blessed with three sets of grandparents: Luther and Vada Baker, Kermit and Jeanne Lipscomb and Carl and Fannie O’Dell. All of them have passed away, but I hope to record information to keep their memory alive, especially for the next generation.

As someone who enjoys family history research, I know that the random memories about people are the true gems you can’t look up in courthouse records. I love that I have objects that belonged to my grandparents, from quilts, glassware and photos to goofy things like hair pins, gloves, keys to cars long sold and notes scribbled on paper.

I found one such note by my Ma-Maw Lipscomb that has a lot of meaning for me. Even though she died in 1986, I feel close to her. I remember a lot about her, her sense of humor, how she called me “Amy doll,” holidays at her house, what her hand felt like when I held it at church. Anyway, she wrote down jokes she heard from TV, poems and other odds and ends she liked, but this is the one that I like the best:

“Know yourself.
Understand yourself.

Accept yourself for what you are.

Don’t be too sorry for yourself.

Be yourself and not somebody else.

Be what you are.”