My Grandmother was a woman of small stature and much vibrance. She loved to play her harmonica for the Lord. She would play at Church and at home. It was her joy in life! Never would she decline if asked to play a song. Grandma taught me one part to sing of “I’ll Meet You In The Morning.” She sang the other part. When I grew up, my mother and I were singing one day (she played the guitar and I the tambourine). We started singing “I’ll Meet You In The Morning.” We discovered that Grandma had taught my mother as a child the opposite part that she had taught me as a child-so we sang as we did with Grandma.

Grandma met Grandpa as youngsters; with their parents owning adjoining properties in Arkansas. They lived in Springdale, Benton Co., Arkansas. White River separated their parents’ properties, with the Goodson’s being on the lower side. Grandma told me that she and Grandpa would meet at the spring on top of the knoll where their property met. That is where Grandpa asked Grandma to marry him. She didn’t have to be asked twice. Grandpa’s father offered to leave his homestead to him if he would just live there until his father died. Grandpa declined, wanting to move on after he was married for a while-his father died six months later. Both homestead properties are now under water with the addition of the dam.

After my grandparents were married they lived in their own little house on the Danford homestead. There was some kind of rift between the in-laws and Grandma. Grandpa’s father was a Minister. Grandpa’s mother was Mary Ann. Well, Mary Ann came to see Grandma one day-she could see her coming through the window. Grandma opened the door and her mother-in-law asked her if she would forgive her. Grandma said that she just stood there and would not reply. After a while Mary Ann said, “Okay, if that’s the way you want it,” and whirled around and walked away. The further away Mary Ann got the worse Grandma felt-she said she knew she had done wrong. All of a sudden she hollered at Mary Ann to wait and ran after her. Mary Ann turned around and ran toward Grandma. They hugged and Grandma said she would forgive her. They were the best of friends from then on; and Grandma said that she learned from that incident to always forgive!

When my sister and I would stay with Grandma as children, she would tell us to go outside and pick some mint leaves from the bush by the house. She boiled them, making us tea. We could put all the sugar we wanted in it. It was really good! She would make rice for our breakfast with milk and sugar-we loved it. She would sit beside me on the couch, hold my hand, and we would play our game of saying “Who loved Who the most!” It would always end with both of us loving each other the same.

Grandma is the one who explained the “Plan of Salvation” to me in her home. I understood that Jesus had died, paying the price for my sins and that if I accepted Him as my Savior, I could go to heaven. I understood that I was loved by God and that He would never leave me or forsake me. Grandma told Grandpa that I wanted to ask Jesus into my heart. Grandpa questioned me to make sure that I understood what I was about to do-I did. He put his hand on my head and prayed for God to use me in ministry, and then, “Yes, even make her a Minister!”