GrandMothers Gifts

I have always been an 'odd bird', or as my Grandmother who was the Astrologer/RootDoctor told my parents after she did my chart. "He ain't wired like the rest of us." Thank God I had her around, no one else had a clue, but Grandma Juanita, she taught me tons. I was lucky that she would not laugh, when I told her about remembering my other lives, she would listen, and comment how nice that must have been or how sorry she was about the difficult memories.
As a child she encouraged my psychic abilities and remembering. I remember sitting at the dining room table with all of her books, and how she showed me how to read an astrological chart before I could ride a bicycle. How she taught me to dowse using both a cut limb from a tree and a pendulum. The way she taught me to 'feel' objects to learn about them and all the psychometry aspects of people and their belongings .. She listened to all my dreams and made me make a list of things I wanted to do in life.
Grandma was good, she could see someone walking down the street, and would proceed to tell me all about them, and when I asked how she knew those things were true, she would say,, 'cause it's in me, like its in you boy, and you better learn to use it, cause they all don't tell the truth like they should, so you need to know the liars from the honest folk." When I told her I saw colors around people, she nearly freaked out with happiness, telling me what the colors meant when seen in someones aura. At first it was very confusing, cause she would hush me from talking to anyone about it. I didn't understand until later, when I heard people calling her a 'nutcase' and that was devestating to hear people mock, my hero. So, I would spend all the time I could with her, even my mother didn't care for her and thought that Grandma was just using me like alittle workhorse, because she would work my ass off, but I loved it. We would spend hours and hours in her flower garden, with her showing me how to identify and treat the 'special' plants which were for healing. To this day, no one else in the family has a clue what I got from the relationship I had with my Grandmother. And she still is giving me more, years after her death.
For those who have read my blog, you might be wondering,, didn't I say that I recently learned about my 'real' father. Yes I did. And you can believe what you want, but Grandma Juanita is the one who made that possible. See, being the pagan I am, I went through this summer doing alot of Ancestor 'work'. It was for a number of things, but mainly because of my interest in genealogy. Grandma's pic, with PawPaw's pic beside her are over my computer desk. I greet them each day with a hello, and miss you both. This summer I delved a bit deeper into what could be termed Ancestor 'worship' (though worship is not the right word really) It was devotional like and at one point I heard Grandma say,, "Speak to the Women" I did a ritual that was for the Matriarch lines through my Mothers side. BAM!! In two days, ''as if by magick, lol" I had more information fall into my lap than most genealogist get in a life time. With that material I have been able to trace my mothers family line(with full documentation) to some astonishing distance and people.
Her great great grandmother was married to an Andrew Powhatan Gadd,, that middle name stuck out like a sore thumb,,, nah!! But sure enough, it goes back to Powhatan, the father of Pochantas.. I nearly shit a gold brick. Still am sorta of leary about some of the documentation on this,, but hey,, looks solid really. Today I recieved a Picture of Andrew Powhatan from a distant cousin named Amy, I have never met her and she sent an email to me out of the blue about Andrew Powhatan.That's him up above on the right and his brother Sanford on the left. Evidently the psychic ability lay with them as a story says that He and his brother, Sanford, both fought at New Market in the Civil War. The night before the battle, Sanford told Andrew he had a strong feeling one of them would die the next day. They talked through the night, and the next day, Sanford was killed.
After being part of the FlatTopCopperhead spies, Andrew was eventually captured and sent to a prisoner of war camp in Maryland. ( The Grandmothers are still working!!! Giving me details of the family)
Then through her other great great grandmother I got all the way back to Sir Walter D' Hayles whose brother was the Priory of the Knights Hospitilers of London, and his daugher married Thomas Brotherton Plantagenet... damn. Then another line, which went to the Ferrers(Ferris) of France who hung with none other than William the Conquerer and her fathers line I had already traced that far ,, as the family owned a castle in england given by William .. so I had two seperate lines meeting up with William. All in all, that week I was able to take my mothers line past the year 1000 AD, not just once, but three different ways. Being the history buff I am, I have enough material to write a good book or two on the family. But the thing that is important to me, was that I KNOW that my GRANDMOTHERS , plural,,, they gifted me with all of this,, but at the time I didn't know why. So, back to Grandma Juanita...
We talk, and talk,, or at least I talked, nonstop as she in pictureform hovers over my computer. I kept hearing past memories of ''family gossip'' and so on,, and then one night, I looked at her and PawPaw and said,,, TELL ME THE TRUTH. I just wanted to know...
My older sister, whom I do not get along well with called the next day, and we talked and as always it ended on a sour note. She blurted out, well you are even a Mc____. anyway.. 'Really' I asked,, well if you know something I don't,,, well spill the beans" well she wouldn't or couldn't so, I turned to my mother and after 43 years, she fessed up... it was too strange. So, Grandma Juanita and Paw Paw, aren't my grandparents and thank ALL THE GODS AND GODDESSES that their warped son isn't my father. Grandma knew, she always did. It made so much sense now that I know. So many of our conversations, she was preparing me for the truth,, but never denied her love to me.
Now, I know nothing of my 'real' father. He could be dead for all I know, but I think that Grandma has spoken to my 'real' grandmother and all the other grandmothers,, because Grandma Juanita was that way,, she didn't care, she would talk to anyone. And I feel them around me all the time now. It is so very nice, having all of my GrandMothers watchin over me. Now, before this experiment with what I called Ancestor Worship, I had felt the missing something. But one thing is for sure, Grandma Juanita, is MY Grandmother, like no one elses. I do love that woman. She is such a big part of who I am, I will always honor and be thankful for that connection we had/have. And especially thankful for the new pics of GGG GrandPa Andrew Powhatan !!