My dear Grandma- Florence Vilate Echols Busby- passed away late Monday night. She was 89 years old. My aunt asked everyone to send memories of her to be compiled and given to my Grandpa and here is what I came up with. I decided it was the best thing I could post in her memory.
The last time I saw my Grandma: June 2008
There isn't one defining memory that I have of Grandma Busby, but rather a combination of multiple memories and thoughts that come to mind when I think of Grandma Busby. I remember going to her house as a child, playing in the backyard in the haystacks and watching the cows eat. We used to clean an old cow tank and leave the hose running in it all night long so that by morning it would be filled up with enough water for us to go swimming in it. No matter how late we would arive at Grandma's (and it always seemed to be at night) she would bring out lots of food and feed us all. I loved sitting on the benches at her counter/table and we would always request her homemade soup. No one could make soup like Grandma, and everytime it was delicious, but never quite exactly the same. In the mornings she would have us help her pick oranges and tangerines to sweeze for juice and the little juice cups she had somehow made the juice taste even better! She always let us eat anything we wanted and there were a few things that I always loved to eat when visiting Grandma: Rootbeer floats, homemade popcorn balls, frozen chocolate chip cookies and Grandma's Chocolate cake (with the pecans on top!). Going to Grandma Busby's was the highlight of our roadtrips. It was a child's dream! Running outside all day with lots of animals to see and old buildings to explore. Even now, when I go back there I'm flooded with memories as nothing ever seems to change in that house, it looks just like it did when I was a child, and suddenly, I feel like a child again! And I believe that was the best part about Grandma Busby, she let us be children and in her lighthearted way, she was a child with us!
Grandma was who I would brag to my friends about saying, "my grandma is 70 and she can do the splits!" I remember my cousins from my other side meeting her for the first time at my sisters wedding, she was singing primary songs and boucing around, dancing, they could hardly believe the energy coming out of that little old lady! Her fun, and energetic lifestyle is what I remember best about Grandma.
Her energy and enthusiasm for life was contangious! Whenever I sing the song "Scatter Sunshine" (Hymn #230) I think of her, not only because I remember her singing it to us once, but also becuase her life reflected the words for she truly "Cheer[ed] and bless[ed] and brighten[ed] every passing day." She showed love to everyone becuase she had a testimony of our Savior Jesus Christ, and patterned her life after His teachings. I remember she gave me a Book of Mormon for my eighth birthday and wrote her testimony of the truthfulness of that wonderful book and of our Savior Jesus Christ in the cover. When she prayed, you could hear the sencerity in her voice. I remember we used to giggle durring prayer becuase she would pray for us all, naming me and my six sisters individually, which took a long time,but I always felt so loved. I knew she knew that Heavenly Father was listeneing, and it helped me to know that too. I remember she would always hold Grandpa's hand durring prayer and give him a kiss after. Now that I'm married, I have a great respect for the example of eternal marriage that she and Grandpa set for me and how special that relationship is. Her testimony of the gosple was evident in the way she lived her life, in her love for the hymns, the primary songs and for the scriptures and I am so greatful for her example.
I love my Grandma Busby so dearly and am greatful for the years that I was blessed to know her and I look forward to seeing her againg. I will miss her, but I know that where she is, she is bouncing around, siging and rejoicing "Scattering Sunshine, all along [her] way".
