Its mother’s day here in Ireland and, in light of my grandmas death in early March causing a trip home to my family and in the month of international women’s day, I find it a perfect time (even though it’s a constant thought) to appreciate all the women in my life who have contributed to my development and have impacted me in a positive way. Today, I’m especially grateful for two women who have been exceptionally influential in my life–my mom.. & my grandma, aka “Lou Lou ”—the matriarch of the Burke family.
Let me give you a brief background on LouLou to give better idea as to why she was such an inspiration and role model for myself, her kids, and my 31 other first cousins (and 14 grandkids)…She was born as an only child, and orphaned at twenty years old. She graduated from her Fordham University class of Pharmacy as just ONE of TWO women in a class 84 total #BossLady. Married my grandpa Jack Burke in a marriage that lasted 59 years, and went on to raise 9 kids, my mom being the fifth– just like me. She was intelligent and driven, but fearless and free spirited all at the same time. On paper, she’s a bad ass chick. In person, she was even more.
Growing up just about two blocks away from my grandma, I spent a lot of time with her. Frequently, she was at my house after school sitting at my kitchen table awaiting my arrival. Whether it was attempting to join her in water aerobics, practicing my driving skills, or googling the answers to cross word puzzles that she was desperate to solve, there was never a dull moment by her side. Reminiscing with photos and videos when I went home reminded me of how hilarious these moments were… I used to record the conversations we would have together and much of these consisted of her advising me “not to chug a lug beers” “to finding a good man” and videos of her simply trying to teach me how to sing or aid me in piano lessons…really, there was never a dull moment. The most recent photo I have of us is a screen shot of her FaceTiming me while I am in my room in Ireland–she was also fascinated by the fact that I had the opportunity to explore the homeland, and my mom made sure we would be able to stay connected while I was here.
As I grew older throughout high school and college—so did my grandma. But, as her health began to fail, she continued to fight her fight until 89 years old. My mom’s dedication, along with her brothers and sisters, to her as she was ill, coupled with my grandmas fight to live each day, inspired and continues to inspire me in an unfathomable way. My grandma was a boss. My mom is a boss… my hope is that one day I can have the type of impact on my kids as they both have, and continue to have on me.
A few words from her eulogy that my mom so gracefully delivered that especially inspired me:
“she was welcoming, there was no such thing as a stranger to my mom.”
“She was always willing to listen to your story.”
“always displaying patience, she was an example to all of us on what it takes to achieve a successful marriage.”
“always encouraging, giving all of her children to succeed in life. Rarely did you hear the words that you couldn’t do something in the Burke house.”
-Ellen Byrne
