Goodbye Nan Ella

On April 4th my Nan van Hoorn passed away (my mother's mother). She was born on April 25th, 1917 and so today would have been her 94th birthday. I was not able to go home to the funeral this time, but attended virtually. My brother-in-law, Jason Rowlings carted his laptop around so that I could participate in almost everything while sitting at home in Georgia in the comfort of my rocking chair. How amzing technology is! To see some pictures of the funeral and me on the laptop, check out my sister's blog.

My Nan lived a very full life. She was born in Holland and migrated to Tasmania with my Pop when my Mum (who was the oldest of 4 girls) was 5 years old. I always loved my Nan's maiden name - Elsienna Pieternella Lindenberg, it sounds almost royal! When they moved to Australia, everyone called her Ella. And this is who our Ella is named after and over the past few years we've refered to Nan in our home, as "Nan Ella". I'm glad she passed away peacefully but will miss her and miss being able to visit her next time we go home.

Here is a picture from Christmas day 2009, with my Mum, Nan, Elliott and Ella.

As a young girl I always felt comfortable and at home at Nan and Pop's house. It was really the only place away from home that I could go and without getting homesick. Tammy and I would usually go to stay with Nan and Pop at the same time and I remember once catching the train with Tammy out to Kimberly. Nan would take us down to the hot springs or for swims in the river. I remember having fun with the old typewritter or trying to use the magnifying glass to burn holes in paper. Other things I loved at their home were how neat and tidy everything was and the food. REAL chocolate sprinkles on rusks, speculaas, Nan's biscuit tin filled with Arnotts biscuits. And as a teenager I even started to enjoy pumpernickel bread. I liked how Nan and Pop would eat their sandwiches open faced with a knife and fork at a table with a crisp table cloth. It all seemed so civilised, from a different time and place. Nan had a way of making me feel loved and special.

After Pop passed away in 1991 I started spending one night a week with Nan to keep her company. I was in grade 12 at Don College and would walk down the hill to her house after school. I loved this time with her, just the two of us. While I worked on my homework, Nan would make me dinner, which was always meat and potatoes. I loved the way she cooked the meat and created a simple gravy afterwards that tasted so delicious on the potatoes. After dinner Nan started teaching me Dutch. Nan was a patient and good teacher. After a few months I could read passages fairly well but didn't always understand what I was reading. Nan would take time to explain what we were reading. She would also share photos and stories about her familly, friends and life in Holland. I looked forward to these weekly visits with Nan. Sometimes I would help her with things around the house, or drive her to the supermarket. I looked forward to sleeping in the firm bed with the crisp sheets and heavy wool blankets. She always seemed happy and grateful, even that first year being on her own.

I also had itchy feet that year and could not stop thinking about leaving Tasmania and going off to see the world. In 1992 I went away to university in Sydney and the following year I spent a year in England on an exchange. This gave me a chance to go to Holland. Nan made arrangements for me to stay with several family and friends. My first Christmas away from Tasmania was spent in Holland. I'm so grateful I had a chance to see Holland. I discovered a whole country of people who loved their meat and potatoes, who also ate their sandwhiches open faced with a knife and fork and who had firm mattresses and crisp sheets. I got to see homes designed by Pop's father in Loppersum and a town in the south full of people with Nan's maiden name, Lindenbergh. I started to gain an appreciation for the country Nan had left behind and the rich heritage from which I come.

As an adult I often think of Nan and some of the parrellels my life has had to hers, even though we are generations apart. Nan worked in England for a time as a young adult, just like I had spent time away from my family when I went to university. Pop and Nan were married at 29 and 30 just like Chris and me. I now find myself living far away from family with young children, just like Nan did. Nan took all these things in stride and she has inspired me to do the same.

A few months before I met Chris I decided that I wanted to name my first daughter Ella Jayne. Ella after Nan and Jayne is my second name. To me this was a special combination and it daily reminds me of the special bond I've always felt with Nan. She was the grandparent I felt closest to because of all the time we had spent together. I'm sad that because I've lived in North America for the past ten years I haven't been able to keep up that relationship as closely as I would have liked. On our last visit home in Dec 2009 Nan could nolonger remember who I was, but she was tickled when we introduced little Ella to her and could remember her name.

I will miss Nan, but she will continue to inspire me and comfort me. When I feel like I'm too busy and overworked I remember her worn hands and think of how much harder she worked. And if she can go through life grateful and with a smile on her face I can too.