First off before I even start this story I'd like to point out I'm not a believer in any of the "higher powers." I believe a lot in fate which is the reason I'm writing this...

I was six years old when my life was torn apart for the first time. My grandfather had passed away previously but that was when I was very young so I have no memory of it. This, on the other hand, I remember like it was yesterday.

August 14, 2003 started out like any other day around that time would. My grandmother was in the hospital so my mom and aunt had pretty much moved into the hospital. My dad and I stayed at home to keep everything as normal as it could be. After all I was only six at the time, there was no need for me to be at the hospital all the time. I don't remember much of the day but I remember that night very well. My aunt and uncle were over working on the race car with my dad and I was outside playing with my cousins and a few of their friends when my dad got the call. I remember my aunt coming out of the barn yelling for me to get in the car. I hadn't actually been told that my grandma had passed away but I was able to tell.

Fast forward a few years later. My grandpa had passed away now my mom decided to sell their old house. It was something I was regretting since I was so young the house was something I was able to walk through a remember all the memories I shared in there. Before I knew it, the house was sold and I was impatiently waiting to meet whoever had bought it. I had only heard a little bits and pieces about her, I just knew that she was an older woman from the city area. A month or so later, the changes began. She started changing everything, really the only thing that stayed the same was house frame. The siding changed, the wallpaper changed, walls came down, new windows went in, literally everything changed. Now if anyone knows me, they know I'm not one for change in the slightest since of the term. So not only was I upset that the house I had practically grew up in was no longer in the family, but it was the changes that were really the icing on the cake. I had already made up my mind about this mystery woman before I met her and it wasn't good.

The following year, I was finally able to meet her. The remodeling was finally complete and she was up to check it all out. Mom basically had to drag me out of the house to go meet her, and then she wanted to take us on a tour (haha yea right) that definitely wasn't happening. A few days went by and she invited us over again. This time we just sat and talked she asked about my grandma and what she was like. I was able to tell her all the stories and memories that were created in the house that was now hers. She even seemed interested in me and my future. Each day I got a little more comfortable with her and before I knew it we were spending a little piece of every day together. We'd go shopping for things to put in her new house and I'd show her little hidden gems around town. I spend slot of that summer all over the finger lakes area checking out a lot of landmarks and soooooo many antique shops.

More and more, I heard about her background and her interests I realized she was more like my grandmother than I ever thought possible. She enjoyed some of the same things my grandma did and even had some similar stories. Even to this day I am realizing how much they are alike.

I like to think fate sent this woman into my life to help with the healing process. I was in a hard place dealing with death before I met her, but now it's better. Of course I still miss my grandmother and having a new figure in my life won't fill that void, but it showed me that it was worth letting people in.

I know if my grandmother was here today she would be so happy someone like this has come into my life and is now living in her house. The remodeling still bothered me for quite a while but I know that if my grandma had the money she would have loved to fix up that house to what it looks like today.

I am just so thankful that whatever brought me and this woman together actually worked out. It was something I needed before I even knew I needed it.