Portrait: My Grandmother

Taken September 27, 2010

At 74 years of age, she looks amazing, not to mention the hardships she has had to deal with in her life. She is the oldest child of eight children and spent a lot of her childhood as a second mother to her siblings. She has provided for two children of her own at a young age, lost a husband, had to take care of her second husband and mother for several years in her own home and nursing homes (still to this day), battled cancer, and she still makes time to see me and her other grandchildren, son, friends, and others. I have the deepest respect for my grandmother, Meemaw.
I think she is completely beautiful, even though she almost is three quarters of a century old. I comment all the time about the wrinkles in her face, the laugh lines, the expressions. Her bone structure is so amazing, the cheek bones stick out and she has a square jaw. She says that her face used to be long and oval, it's interesting to see the changes your body goes through as you get older.
Whenever I take pictures of Meemaw, I can NEVER get her to keep her eyes open, for example, this picture. There are a few that I've snapped and gotten, but I chose this as my favorite because of her eyes and her wonderful smile. I love her gap-tooth. I love the way her glasses magnify her face on the right eye. I'll always cherish this picture.