This is a story written by my Grandmom, Minya Yudenfriend. Her life philosophy was “write it down.” She constantly told the stories of the people she loved, she put her heart and life into every word and I’m sharing them to carry on her legacy and to tell her stories forever.
Happy I Love You Day
On Memorial Day, 1992, Paula, Brittany and Danielle moved in with Herbie and me at 5065 Wynnefield Avenue. We lived there for three years before all moving to 401 Caranel Circle in Penn Valley, where we lived together for another six years. It was a wonderful time for all of us. We helped each other through good times and bad.
Once in a while, Paula and the girls were sad. One day that was particularly tough, I decided to do something to make everyone happy. I drove to Whare’s, our bakery around the corner, and bought a very special cake. When I came home, I told everyone to gather around the table to see what I had. Seeing a bakery box made everyone smile right away. And, when I lifted the top, the smiles turned to laughter. It said, ‘Happy I Love You.’ When everyone stopped laughing the girls said, “Grandmom, what is this all about?” And, I explained, “I didn’t want everyone to be sad anymore, so I created Happy I Love You Day. From now on, we will celebrate this holiday whenever we need cheering up!” And, from then on, Happy I Love You Day has been used, albeit sparingly, whenever the need arises.
Follow up note: When Grandmom died, we decided to make her birthday (February 17th) the official Happy I Love You Day, in addition to any unofficial ones we may need throughout the year.