just under a week ago, early on Saturday 2/16/2008, my amazing grandmother, Dolores Taliaferro, passed away from this world. i know she was a born-again believer, and that Jesus welcomed her with open arms and a smile and said "Well done, good and faithful servant." it'll be tough for me and my family without her, but i am happy that she is no longer in a painful and depressive state, fighting with a body that just didn't want to do what was expected of it.

as i said in my picture description, she was among the wisest and most fiercely loving people i've ever known. her family took precedent over all else, and woe to anyone who tried to bring us down. she was also a fun-loving woman, always up for a game of Uno or Rummikub or Wahoo!, and she enjoyed nothing more than getting her hands dirty in her garden or sitting with her feet in a babbling creek, relaxing to the sound of the moving water. she was both a great lady and a mischeivous tomboy. nobody told DJ what to do - she had a strong independent spirit, and gave me a great example of what an adult of virtue and integrity looked and behaved like.

my Granny gave me many things, from my smile (literally -- she helped pay for the braces!) to much of my clothes, from my sense of justice to my intense stubborness. i couldn't count the number of times from my childhood on through college that she fed me, entertained me, clothed me, and gave me a place to lay my head. (i'm sure my parents are as grateful as i am that she was in Norman during my tenure at OU -- i can't even imagine what those four and a half years would have been like without her there!)

i could write entire tomes on how amazing my Granny was, but i'll show you instead. my brother put together the following photo-movie of her. i hope you can see a glimpse of the beautiful, courageous, bright, loving woman that i knew. she was a blessing to all who knew her, and she will be dearly missed.


Dolores Taliaferro Memorial from Gabriel Jordan on Vimeo.