My Meema

     Today, May 17, is the birthday of my beloved grandmother, Meema. Phyllis Eleanor Phillips was born in 1905; she was a most cherished child as she was the youngest of five children, two of whom did not survive infancy. Her doting parents did not spoil her however and she became an independent free spirit who attended bathtub gin parties and sang in a barbershop quartet. Meema married Larry Voorhies and had a little girl, but divorced her alcoholic husband soon after. She never remarried and out of necessity became a working woman way before it was acceptable for ladies to have a career outside the home. When the family of her only child, my mother, relocated to another state, Meema moved with them, living in the same house and when not working, she helped with the seven grandchildren. The family was her life and the children loved her for her musicality, her creativity and even her no-nonsense guidance. Meema has been sorely missed but fondly remembered since her death in 1995. Perhaps a bottle of her favorite Stag beer is in order for today.