Speaking of Bill Withers

Everyone is well-versed with "Ain't No Sunshine", a fabulous tune, as well as his other standards. But this one I had never heard until MF introduced me to it, shortly after we began dating.

See, I loved my grandmother. She was probably the most influential person in my life. It was her declining health and eventual passing that brought MF and me together, oddly enough.

We were just getting to know each other and I, having been burned more times than I could count, was unsure of whether I should take a chance on him. The day she passed, we already had plans to see a movie. But when I explained why we would have to postpone our first date, his response was immediate. He offered to send flowers, he called, and was concerned in the way a friend would be. He was a great comfort in a time of sorrow; to someone he had only known for a few weeks. I saw his character in that moment and it meant the world to me.

My grandmother had gone to be with God, but her timing was clear. It was like she was smiling down on us with her approval.

Two years before I had ever even met MF, I wrote a short story for "Writer's Digest" for which I won an award. It was about my grandmother's hands. When MF played this song for me, I cried. It's been a sentimental favorite ever since.

Grandma's Hands

Grandma's hands
Clapped in church on Sunday morning
Grandma's hands
Played a tambourine so well
Grandma's hands
Used to issue out a warning
She'd say, "Billy don't you run so fast
Might fall on a piece of glass
"Might be snakes there in that grass"
Grandma's hands

Grandma's hands
Soothed a local unwed mother
Grandma's hands
Used to ache sometimes and swell
Grandma's hands
Used to lift her face and tell her, she'd say,
"Baby, Grandma understands
That you really loved that man
Put yourself in Jesus' hands"
Grandma's hands

Grandma's hands
Used to hand me piece of candy
Grandma's hands
Picked me up each time I fell
Grandma's hands
Boy, they really came in handy
She'd say, "Matty don't you whip that boy
What you wanna' spank him for?
He didn' drop no apple core"
But I don't have Grandma anymore
If I get to Heaven I'll look for
Grandma's hands