Gram and Gramps are Sal’s father’s parents from Kentucky. They do not live far from their son’s farm. Their language is sprinkled with colorful expressions and slang such as “chickabiddy” and “gooseberry.” Gramps has a raspy voice and is curious about everything, and Gram has a whispery voice and expresses spontaneous moments of joy by saying “Huzza, huzza!” Gram and Gramps are “full up to the tops of their heads with goodness and sweetness, and mixed in with all that goodness and sweetness [is] a large dash of peculiarity . . . you could never predict what they would do or say.”
Gram and Gramps take Sal on a road trip to Lewiston, Idaho. They give her the opportunity to “walk in [her] mother’s moccasins.” They follow the same route her mother took on the bus and stop at some of the places her mother stopped. The close, loving relationship that exists between Gram and Gramps is evident during the trip. They know each other well, and treat each other with kindness and respect. They live in the moment and are excited about life.
After Gram dies in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Gramps has her body flown back to Kentucky. He buries her in the aspen grove on the farm. Gramps moves to the farm and lives with his son and granddaughter, Sal.
