Miss Katherine

The matriarch of our church is a cute little lady I’ll call “Miss Katherine”. You’d never guess that she’s pushing 90 years old. She still lives alone, drives and stays on the go with a bunch of activities. She is VERY lively, and you never know what she’s going to do next. She’s a hoot. That’s southern talk for someone who’s a whole lot of fun. She’s not afraid to speak her mind, though. She has bright blue eyes and a bit of a mischievous grin. And something funny is always rolling off of her tongue. She doesn’t plan it that way, though. That’s what makes her fun. I asked her this past Sunday how she was doing. She said, “Fine, for the moment”. “Are you on a moment by moment basis, Miss Katherine”? “Are you kidding? At this age I don’t even buy green bananas”.

Before her balance got a little out of whack she came to the aerobics class I teach at church. She bounced around during the cardio portion and then did her own modified version of the floor exercises while sitting in a chair. Except for the night she decided to TRY the floor exercises. She was in the floor before I could blink an eye, but I kept my mouth shut because no one tells Miss Katherine what to do. I certainly wasn’t going to be the first. I like that my head is connected to my shoulders and I want to keep it there, thank you. She managed the leg lifts and sit-ups just fine. Until it was time to get up. She didn’t seem to mind that it took two of us to pull her off of that mat. She gave me a second scare the night that she kept fumbling around with the top of her sweatshirt. When I asked her if she was okay, she casually responded that it was just her heart monitor. Heart monitor???? It seems they strap one on her a couple of times a year and monitor her for 24 hours to see how her ticker is doing. Of course, she told me this AFTER we had worked out especially hard. I walked around the next day afraid that I would get a call from her doctor asking me what in the heck I was doing, running an 88- year old woman with heart problems in the ground.

The thing I like best about her is that she’s a great Christian lady who walks the walk. She doesn’t talk much about her religion. She just lives it. She knows the bible inside and out. She loves everyone. She forgives. She does mission work, and she’s excited to be at church every time the door is open. She leads by example. She never seems to have one of those days when she has to fake it because her faith is a little weak. I so admire that. She is something else. That’s southern talk for someone you admire.