Visiting Grandma Simmons

We've been looking for a chance to visit Grandma Simmons for several weeks now.  We had a cold going around the house so we waited.  But we'd been in the clear for several days, so this morning (15 September) I called Grandma Simmons and asked if we could stop by to introduce Oliver Mac to her.  She said today would be a good day to do that.  So as soon as Matt got home we headed to Provo.

We had a nice visit with Grandma, chatting about gardens and winter and family history. She pointed out a picture of her paternal grandparents that was behind one of her chairs.  I remembered that Grandma had told me a story about this man on a visit a few months ago but the significance really struck me on this particular visit of introducing Oliver to his great grandmother.  Let me explain.

Grandma Simmons' grandfather, Andrew Peter Olsen, and his wife, Ane, joined the church in Denmark on July 12, 1862.  They left Denmark, though Andrew was especially attached to his farm and country, and crossed the plains by ox team and arrived in Ephraim in October of 1867.  Andrew was 35 years old.  Ane died in 1887.  They'd had 12 children.  Andrew married again, a Danish woman named Helen Marie Larsen.  She, too, died during childbirth, leaving a baby girl.  Andrew hired a woman named Martha Kistena Johnson to help care for his children.  They eventually married and they had 7 sons together.  One of those sons was Daniel K. Olsen - Grandma Simmons' father.  Andrew died in 1928.  He was almost 97 years old.  

Grandma remembers Andrew.  She was 8 years old when he died. So, she is probably one of the very few people still alive to have known a pioneer who crossed the plains.  And here she is, this faithful woman, holding our Oliver, who was born on Pioneer Day.  She is a connection to them, to our past.  It makes those dear early members, the ancestors of our children, feel much closer to see Grandma holding Oliver.  I hope someday Oliver will recognize the power and the faith  within him that comes from those who came before and worked and worshiped and shared their faith with their families.  We are the beneficiaries of much goodness.

 

We tried to get a picture with the other Littles, but Daniel was, well, he was being an almost 2 year old.  So here is a darling picture of Grandma (with Matt, Kate, and Oliver.)