A couple of weeks ago, May 13, was the birthday of my mother-in-law, Ruth Virginia Jacobs. She passed away in 2014 and it left a big hole in our family. To celebrate her birthday, Bob's dad (Pop) wanted as many of us that could to meet together at her grave site to just remember her together. And we did. Somebody told about the time she gave us three newlywed girls sexy lingerie for Christmas. Only Jinny! Another told of a time when, on a trip, Jinny slipped in the hotel bathtub but was more concerned with the perceived germs in the tub than she worried about being hurt. Only Jinny! Then somebody mentioned the time when the gas meter man asked Jinny to hold on to the dogs while he checked the meter but, as he was walking out of the yard she let them go and they chased him. Her excuse was that he asked her to hold them "while he was checking the meter". Only Jinny!! There are so many more funny stories about Jinny and she would've been the first to tell one on herself.
But Jinny was so much more! I had the pleasure of knowing her for 33 years and she became another mom, a spiritual mentor, Nan to her grands, and just a really good friend. Because of Jinny's example, I wanted to perfect the art of pie making. She was a really good cook but her pies were so yummy! Almost every time I bake a pie, I think of Jinny. And when it came to making a home, there was nobody better! Her home was not only always beautifully decorated but it was a warm and welcoming place for her immediate family as well as lots of church family and family from Arkansas. And Jinny was an author. She could always tell stories better than anybody I know so it just seemed natural when, in her late 70's, she wrote and self published a book based on her life growing up in the hills of Arkansas titled "My Heart Remembers". What a gift she gave us and now my grand kids!
Happy Birthday, dear Jinny! Remembering you is easy because it always makes me smile.
