My Inspiration

Amy Sams

My Grandma Amy, who I was named for, was the epitome of class. We had so many things in common, it's not a wonder that we made such a connection.

She had eight sisters (girls, girls, girls) and one baby brother. She too had five children, four boys and a girl, my mom. She also, was smack dab in the middle, the center, of the pack. She had a love for food and serving others and I think that she did it just naturally and unintentional. (She was obviously my inspriation to attend Culinary School. And as luck would have it, she lived in Colorado when I was learning to be a chef and she taste tested everything I made) Charisma and beauty flowed from her being and presence, and now we are treading water that I've never swam in.

As a young lady she and her sisters spent much time singing together and playing the piano.

She married a unique, strong, and handsome man. He was one of the world's first "professional" televised wrestlers. They together raised four, Paul Bunyon like, strapping men who learned the family trade of masonry. Then along came their princess. All the while raising her brewd, she worked in her own and other family members restaurants. She has been the best cook that I've ever been in the presence of.

I want to tell the facts accurately, and it wouldn't do justice if I didn't let you know that she enjoyed her social times. She made the best seven and water you could ever enjoy at happy hour. And her unmistakable laugh got louder after a few.

The thing that I take away more than anything, especially when I reminisce, is that her family was everything to her. She didn't do anything that her family wasn't the center of. She didn't step foot into a place her children couldn't go. Even in her elder age, when she wasn't able to live alone and had completely lost her eyesight, she insisted that she pull her weight and still provided us with meals and a house cleaner.

It seemed as though she was perfectly positioned, for me. She was in KS as I grew up. She moved to CO when I was in college. She moved back to KS when I had Ammorae and we lived together when I really started to mature and needed direction.

I could only strive and try to be anything like her. People flocked to her presence and her family adored her. She taught me so much, and as I continue to grow I understand her more and more. I believe that she is a beautiful spirit and an angel that watches and guides me through my life. And I couldn't be more happy to name my blog after her and start this new adventure with her in mind.

Grandma Amy, I love and miss you. All I need to do now, after raising my finger, is say "Absolutely"