Social Distancing: Getting One Last Visit

A tribute to my grandmother, who I was thankfully able to see one last time during the pandemic

It’s a special one day return of the Social Distancing segment!

This segment is a tribute.

Last April, in the early days of the pandemic, I told you about my amazing grandmother. She turned 90 in April of 2020. We had a big party planned. The whole family was gonna come down to Wyoming to celebrate with her. But then COVID scuttled those plans, like so many other plans.
I missed my chance to see her then. And her health steadily declined during the pandemic. She had a stroke, lost most of her vision. My parents moved her to Colorado to be closer to them.

Thankfully, I was able to finally see her last month. I took a selfie with her, my other grandparents, my parents and brother.
I’m especially thankful that I got to see her because she passed away Thursday. Vivian Fern Ladwig was 91 years old.

This stupid pandemic made it hard to see family, and her health problems made even phone calls difficult. But my whole family is vaccinated, which made it possible for me to go see her one last time. I can’t describe how grateful I am that I got that opportunity.

She was a heck of an artist. Her art room, which was the room I slept in when I visited, was filled with ribbons from the Wyoming State Fair. I keep a painted saw blade of hers on my desk. I’m especially glad I have it this morning. And I’m glad I got to see you one last time, grandma. Goodbye. I love you.