A Day with Miss Millie

a quieter day today and time to process things a bit...

Among the other things we did yesterday was pay a visit to dear Miss Millie. Still living alone at 94, in her cozy apartment in Lynden, Millie was thrilled to have us stop by. She served up coffee and a plate of homemade peanut butter cookies -- yes-- that she baked herself just the other day! Her eyesight is nearly gone but she still keeps active.

We know Millie from our days at the little church in Deming. She has often taken credit for the two of us 'young people', as she calls us, getting hitched. You see the first time Bruce and I made an appearance at church together was one of those 'we are going public with the relationship' moves that can set tongues a waggin'.  the little old ladies in the church were just delighted to see that poor young man smiling and looking so twitter-patted.  And they whispered their delight behind wrinkled spotted hands and winked at each other with conspiratorial knowing. Except for Millie. Miss Millie has NEVER held back when it comes to speaking her mind.

I still remember how she approached us after church. Standing close to one another-- but not too close-- in the fellowship room-- and trying to look as nonchalant as possible about having arrived together and having just sat together in church. Millie leaned towards me and with the twinge of Oklahoma still strongly apparent in her voice, asked straight out "Well are you two kids goin-to get married or what?"
I was taken back with surprise but I am sure Bruce was ready to faint!! I think I sort of laughed nervously and said 'Um, we've only just started dating!"
Millie looked Bruce up and down then turned back to me and said quite emphatically "Well, if he keeps you danglin' too long you send him to me. I'll get him on track!"

We had a good time visiting with Millie yesterday. She regaled us with tall tales of her youth back in Oklahoma. She was raised by her pa and ma (grandma and grandpa) because her mother died when she was just a few days old and her daddy had to work and had a whole brood of kids to care for.  Millie is full of what we call "Millie-ism's"
Phrases such as  "I was too sad to cry and to mad to cuss." 

She talks about her aunties; There was my marrying aunt-- she's been married about 5 times. And my drinking aunt-- don't have to ask why we called her that! And then there was the prissy one who married a Doctor and don't she think she was fine stuff from then on!

Meet Millie on the street and ask how she is and she is likely to answer most flippantly "Drunk!" and keep on walking. When she served us coffee she asked  "Now do you take anything in it because I'm out of cream and I drank all the whiskey." She makes a lot of jokes about drinking whiskey but I doubt very much she has ever touched a drop in her life. She just likes being funny and she loves to raise your eyebrows.

She loves her kids, babies, and Jesus and loves telling stories about all three.  Millie is in her own words 'fat and freckled and still a red head!" I'd say at 94, that's a good thing to be!