Tribute to my mother
Told by her daughter, Gilva Terry Meyers


In memory of my wonderful mother and father, I want to write a tribute to them.  My mother was a sweet, kind, patient woman.  She never talked badly about anyone.  Filthy thoughts and words never entered her mind.  She had a little wink and smile for everyone.  She was a beautiful seamstress and we were always proud to wear the clothing she made us. 

She cooked delicious food.  None of her daughters can make pie like she did.  She kept a clean home.  I remember her saying,  “Do what you do well, keep things in place, be organized.”  She pieced and quilted beautiful quilts.  She had a love for animals and was kind to them.  She loved the youth and many came to her for advice and council.

While she was at Milford, Utah visiting with Grace (Gilva’s sister) and I she went Christmas shopping.  The sidewalk was icy and she slipped.  She was in the Milford Hospital for six weeks.  Her hip wouldn’t mend so we took her to the hospital in Cedar City, where Dr. Graff took care of her.  While there they discovered that she had Leukemia.  With all the suffering she went through she never complained, always trying hard to care for herself.  Her hip never healed and the Leukemia made her very weak.  One night while I was with her I heard her ask the Lord to take her home.  I said: “Mamma I don’t think it is fair.  You have paid your tithing so honestly and lived your religion, why should you have to suffer so much?”  She shook her head and said:  “Gilva, Gilva, if I don’t complain, why should you?”  This taught me a good lesson.

The day before she died she went into a coma, while there, she sang in her sweet voice the first verse of “Nearer My God to Thee.”  She had been worrying about her hip not healing; when she came out of the coma she said, “I’m going to be all right, I’m not afraid.”  She was alert and I said to her, “How do you feel?”  She looked at me, smiled and said, “I feel with my hands.”  She then told us she was going home tomorrow morning.  And she did.   We love her and miss her but have many, many choice teachings and memories. 

She passed away February 23, 1950 in Enterprise, Utah.