My Grandma, Bernice Elizabeth Braddock-Braxton, left this earth on Nov. 8, 1986. 5 days after my 12th birthday. I was so mad at her, not because she died, but because (and nobody has ever known this) i selfishly felt jipped. She was supposed to take my birthday shopping that day but, she decided not to. I was a little kid. I didnt really understand what was happening. I mean, yeah i knew she was gone, and i'd never talk to her or see her but where was my gift?? I felt so bad for a long time for having those initial thoughts.
.......Saturday, November 8, 1986......
I was ironing my clothes for sunday when the phone rang. I dont remember if i answered or if mommy answered, but i remember my mother making that noise....when my mom cries she sounds like shes laughing, and vice versa. So i heard that noise and I started laughing. then i realized she wasn't. I didnt know what happened but immediately I started to cry too. I remember mommy was pregnant with Harold and I was so worried about her. Next thing I know we were 20 miles away, pulling into my grandparents yard in Millbrook, NY.
I walked into the house and I guess my mother drove so fast from Poughkeepsie to the country that she beat the coroner, cause Grandma was still laying on the couch in the back room. mind you, nobody told me she was back there! lol she scared the shit outta me!! but i still remember her face, peaceful, calm, with her glasses and that pretty smile on her face. She died in her sleep. I dont know what she must have been dreaming about, but I can only imagine it must have been a great one. Maybe she saw her parents, and families and friends that she missed so much.
At some point during that night, the house became overrun with all of our family. My Uncle Ricky and his family made it up from Long Island. Uncle Swanson, Rev. Roundtree, Aunt Phyllis, Uncle Bobby....there were soooo many people in and out of the house. I remember Aunt Phyllis yelling at my grandfather cause she felt something on her leg and thought he was playing games with her. lmao see thats how my family is. no matter whats going on, somebody makes someone laugh! thats our therapy.
My grandmother and I were close. I think she was closer to my sister, (tiffani looks just like grandma) but we had a special relationship. I would always tell her first about whatever boy i liked at the particular time. or how mad my mother made me, then she would "spank" mommy so i would feel better. I was her oldest granddaughter. But I had a fresh mouth, lol so i was always in trouble. she would make me go outside and pick my own switch so she could beat me! lol hows that for child abuse? i had to pick my own weapon! lol I would steal sips of her beer and pulls off her camel cigarettes. (at one point i vowed to never smoke a cigarette...so much for that lol) one time, she wanted me to dust or clean or something and i dont remember what i said to her but she came into the living room from the kitchen and with her long nails, smacked me right across my face!! then went right back in the kitchen and lit up a cigarette! she was gangsta as hell too! kinda like a skinny madea! lol she didnt take no mess from nobody!! what i didnt know, until i got older, was that grandma was an alcoholic. I didnt know exactly what it was at the time. i thought she was just funny. I remember her hiding liquor bottles all over the house. behind, couches, and chairs, everywhere. once, my grandfather found every bottle, poured half the liqour out and filled the rest with water. I laughed like crazy when she flipped out on him. again, i didnt know better. One time, i was in the other room and grandma just fell off the dining room chair. i laughed, at first, then realized she wasnt moving and called for poppop. she had blacked out right in front of me. thats when i realized how serious it was.
The 5 of us grandkids, (harold wasnt born yet) had a singing group, we called ourselves "the braxton 5" lol you couldnt tell us nothing. we would practice for hrs our dance steps and try to get our vocals right. Tragic! lol but Grandma was always our biggest supporter. there were times when we would get so dirty outside playing that we would have to strip, outside, so she could hose us down before we came in her house. "in or out!!" thats what she would yell when we would go back and forth, slamming the screen door. She and I were in so many car accidents, because before all the seat belt and child restraint and dwi laws, grandma would drive drunk, with us in the car. nobody really remembers all of this but me. and its sad, cuz i cant really reminisce about her. oh! except when my cousin Tami decided to get us chased by a bull! lol i never saw grandma drive so fast! lmao
I have a million stories i can share about my grandma! I can literally go on for days. The 12 short years i knew her were the best years of my life. I could go to her for any and everything and even when i would get chastised she still hugged me and told me she loved me. its been 24 yrs since i last touched her. its been 24 yrs since i walked into that back room and saw her lying on the couch. 24 yrs since she found her peace. 24 yrs since i was mad at her. But i think shes getting back at me because every year around my birthday i get that "smoker's cough" that she had. lol maybe that's my birthday present!! lol i hear u grandma!!!
