Grandma's Divine Healing Appointment...
~A Poem For 'The Unforgettable Memory' Challenge~
I still remember...
angry . red . ants...
sweltering . humid . southern . heat...
the . best . homemade. popsicles . on . planet . earth...
summer . fun...
and . barefoot . bliss...
I also remember...
The . nail...
searing . pain...
immediate . shock...
a . river . of . tears...
& me immediately doing a one-legged flamingo-esque, limping run back toward my grandfather's pale brick house in a panic...
*************************************************
which eventually led to...
Grandma's divinely-appointed, withered, sepia-brown hands working their magic on my wound...
Then me... suddenly feeling...
calmed...
comforted...
& fit to face another day of play...
*************************************************
Author's Note: The year that I turned six, I was walking barefoot when I stepped on a nail while vacationing in Texas, but this was no ordinary nail; it was the rusty-dusty kind, the kind that eventually caused me to have an unwanted duel with a tetanus shot.
There I was, happily running along the carpet of red dirt that lined the sidewalk in front of my grandfather's house when I suddenly felt something impale the bottom, mid-section of my right foot. As soon as the pain hit, I booked it to my grandfather's house, like a cheetah in a track meet, so that I could tell my grandmother what had happened.
I couldn't believe how bad the wound was; it looked as though the sole of my foot had been filleted with a paring knife like an unsuspecting piece of catfish that was ready to take a warm dip in the deep fryer. Truth be told, my foot also felt like it had a bad case of strep throat since it was intensely sore and tender to the touch.
Once my grandmother (affectionately called Big Momma by us youngins) learned what had happened, she hurried into the kitchen. I naturally wondered what my sagacious grandmother was up to.
I soon found out when she returned to the living room with a large piece of raw steak. To my utter surprise, she placed the raw steak directly on top of my wound to draw all of the soreness out.
I was initially unsure that her 'steak' remedy would work, but when Big Momma finished tending to my foot for a period, the pain began to vanish, and the cut began to heal.
My Big Momma had a gift for healing. In fact, I've been told that I had a bad cold when I was six months old and that my grandma cured it by collecting a special species of bugs from outside and placing several of them into a small satchel; then she tied the satchel around my neck. I later learned that Big Momma's special 'bug' remedy had chased my cold away completely.
It's been 33 years since she graduated from Earth, but my grandmother & her magical remedies still live in my heart to this day.
Thank you so much for stopping by and for sharing in this special memory with me.
Much Love,
Tiffa Go 🌸
About the Creator
Tiffany Gordon
I am a super-spiritual, fun-loving artist, writer, & peer-counselor residing in the Pacific Northwest. I am also an Institute of Children's Literature alumna who enjoys writing about the triumph of the human spirit.
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By Shirley Belk6 days ago in Fiction
Comments (30)
Ouch! This is magical and marvellous. I love big momma. I’ve never heard of steak on wound before. One of my favs of yours as it is a personal tale! 💚☺️
Tg - I wanted to share this with you back here — You are such a caring soul. I just learned our Shirley Belks Son died very suddenly this morning! I know she’s a member of your VSS group - Please share condolences with them. Jk
So beautiful!! Evoking similar feelings from me too! My grandma passed too and reading this poem brought such good memories. Thank you so much for sharing! 🙏🏾💗
I can only imagine how much that hurt, Tiffany, but I have strong faith in the healing abilities of our elders, especially the old remedies many scoff at in our modern day. They just don't know... A wonderful entry. 🥰
❤️🌻❤️🌻❤️
Gurrl!!! Big Momma's with healing arts the world over were and are revered for their special knowledge. Ohhhh if we in our youth only had it innis to learn it. What a blessing to have such a Grandmother! What a wonderful poem to write!
Back to say congratulations on your leaderboard placement 🎉🎊🎉🎊♥️
Wooohooooo congratulations on your Leaderboard placement! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
Raw steak on a wound; I’ve never heard of that one, but I’m a firm believer in some good home remedies! This was beautifully written!!
I love your grandma! I had a similar ghrandma who was always there to be my mentor and healer
Who ate the steak after that? You know, all the remedies for everything, God put in nature, the Native Americans and our forefathers and mothers knew them, if only we had learned them. My tetanus shot was from a dog bite, it was no fun. Those were the fun times, blessings to you and Grandma.
Raw steak on top of a wound, I have never tried that. Nicely written poem about your Grandmother, and wonderful memories too. Well done Tiffany.
Oh no, those rusty nails and tetanus shots. Brings back memories. Glad you are ok T, and may all grandmas be happy wherever they are.
I love this, Tiff. I love how the poem leaves unanswered questions to the imagination and then you explain with your personal story. I also love the *form* of the poem, the way you structured it, especially the periods to start it. You're a master poet. 💕 ⚡
Wow, grandma's always make us feel better. Did you go to the hospital and get your Tetanus shot? I had a different experience, a neighbor was returned a borrowed wooden ladder. She handed to me over the fence. To say the less, the ladder fell on me, I ended with a nail stuck on my lower butt check. I did not have a grandma near by to comfort me. I was 12.
I like the layout of your descriptive poetic prose in the beginning. It was a well engaging introduction, too. I like the effort you put into your authors note . It was like an intentional, unintentional story. That was written with the readability in mind, plunging us back into the past with you. Every line held it's own and supported very well, our imagination. Especially the description here~ filleted looking foot ~ like a catfish getting ready to be dipped in the deep fryer. A perfectly involved imagery 👌🏾 The power behind the steak and those bugs in the satchel brought you much needed healing. Big momma was blessed and so were you. This was a well written piece Tiffy, thank you for sharing it with us 👌🏾🤗❤️
The poem was such fun reading and the story was the foundation that made it rock steady. What. Great story Tod was such grace and finesse. Well done, Tiffany!
This is great!!❤️
I love the poem!!!! It is really beautiful. Also love the look in grandma's eyes.
That was fun, scary, happy, sad, and full of spirit, all wrapped up in a cherished memory. I could see everything happening and felt it! Stoopid rusty nail! Got one in the hand before but I was well past 6 years old. I still freaked out, 😅. Go, Tiffa Go!!!
💙✍️💙 Ms. Tiffany: I loved this. It brought back a flood of cherished memories about Grandmas & Grandpas, healing rituals, rusty nails & more. ✍️ Beautiful Work!!! 💙👏✍️💙
Graduated from Earth, that was beautiful. We are all spirits having a human experience in a school called Earth. I don't know how that steak or the insects worked but they somehow did. Wow, I'm impressed. She really knows her stuff!
Thank you for sharing this beautiful memory dear Tiffany. It is a lovely poem ❤️💖🌹
A fitting tribute to her, Tiff. And she's giving you a hug right now.
I love your poem! And figured it said it all - and it does! But that add on was just some great icing on the cake - that metaphor misses the mark, unlike your excellent (and dire) "piece of catfish" metaphor - yikes!