My Gramie Irene had a big heart. You could not enter her house without getting a bear hug. You could not sit at her table unless she fed you something. And you couldn’t leave without her pressing her hands on your cheeks, looking straight into your eyes, and saying “I love you.” (She also made you take something home – an extra box of cereal she picked up at the store, vegetables from her garden, a jar of pickles she made.)

I like to give for the sake of giving (with no need for something in return), but I’m nowhere near as open as my grandmother. (Only people who know me well know of my generosity; like any New Englander, it takes me a while to warm up to someone…but once you’re in, you’re in.) So it’s a rare treat to meet someone like my grandmother – immediately trusting, always something nice to say, and an innate desire to put a smile on someone’s face. If you’d like to know who made my month – well, my year – pick up the November issue of Upper Valley Life. I wrote an article for the shopping guide on Fernwood Farmhouse Confections in Canaan, NH – and two women who reminded me of Gramie Irene.