She had several "beaux," but married my grandfather because he made her laugh. He also was a great help in caring for her father, who had become quite senile. She lost both parents before she was thirty. Joy (my grandmother) and her husband Claude (grandfather), had three children, ten grandchildren, and fourteen great-grandchildren.

She took up genealogy as a hobby during the Depression, and it was easy for her because her ancestors had lived in this small town for quite some time, the earliest in the 1700's. She was able to get records from the courthouse and the old churches, translating the old French easily. She had a knack with languages, as well as numbers, and was quite the amateur historian.

I have no memory of "meeting" my grandmother...it seems I always knew her, even though I didn't live in the same town with her. The folks always managed to visit three or four times a year, and at age six I started spending a couple of weeks alone with Mammaw every summer. I'm not quite sure how or why that came about, but we were both happy about it. Sometimes I'd slip up and call her Mama, instead of Mammaw.

Her greatest joy was having the whole extended family over and cooking huge meals for them. At the drop of a hat, she'd call all the local relatives over for a "get together."

Meeting each new baby was very special. As each new great-grandchild came along I remember her saying,"This is the most beautiful baby I've ever seen." And she meant it every time. A few days before she died, she got to meet her newest great-grandchild, three month old Aubrey Joy. Mammaw said,"I think I'll keep her." It was her happiest moment in the hospital.

She also enjoyed playing cards and Scrabble. She loved to read and even took the time to read all the science fiction and mystery books I loaned her in my teen years. She said,"Some of this stuff is too crazy for me, but some of it's good." We read Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy out loud to each other (taking turns) when I was 16. She really liked that story.

She always had compassion for animals, and left a bowl of water and dry catfood outside her backdoor for any strays or wild animals in the area. She really did enjoy her "pretty girl" Sadie these last couple of years.

In her later years, she became a huge fan of Lilian Jackson Braun's "Cat Who" series. When she lost most of her eyesight to Macular Degeneration, I read them aloud for her and bought her the book on tape versions. She thought the tapes were good, but said she preferred my voice.

She was very sharp mentally until the last couple of years, though multiple health problems had made her physically frail in her mid 90's. She took matters into her own hands and hired me to stay with her. My parents had retired to her home town, and my dad was quite ill with cancer, so I had two reasons to move here.

It's hard to sum up her 101 years and seven months, and I'm sure I didn't do her justice. To me, she was everything a human being should be. Her name was appropriate, she was a joy.

Thank you all for your prayers and good thoughts on her behalf.