In Tribute To Norma Baram, Our "Grandma Baram"

This blog post is dedicated to Norma Baram, "Grandma Baram" to me. Norma passed away on Thursday in Boston, MA:


- Norma Baram was a special person and a wonderful grandmother. When I think of the woman who we affectionately called Grandma Baram, the very first thing that comes to mind is how happy she would be whenever we would pay her a visit. She always seemed genuinely overjoyed to see my brother and I, and all things considered that is pretty impressive. But the truth is that for her and her late husband, our grandfather Harry Baram ... it was always obvious that they both received immense satisfaction and joy from sharing in our lives and in being there for us whenever possible. Whether it was a birthday, a bar mitzvah, a graduation, or a new job, nothing was more important to Norma than seeing her children and grandchildren find happiness and success. Any time we talked to her, Norma would smile as we told her our latest accomplishments or laugh reassuringly when we told her our latest problems. And no matter how much Matt or I would ramble on, with Grandma Baram , you could always tell she was genuinely interested in everything we had to say – she was a great listener, and when she did offer advice, it was always wise and to the point. Norma got pleasure out of the little things that others might find mundane – she’d eagerly thumb through hundreds of our photos, and patiently and bemusedly listen to our latest melodramatic tales of woe.

Grandma Baram didn’t like to talk about herself, but was more than happy to listen to everyone else’s problems – always quick to lend an ear or to offer some patented grandmotherly advice. At the same time, she was a smart, curious person who could easily talk about any number of subjects. She read the newspaper every day, and she liked to discuss everything from politics to plays. While one’s first impression of Norma was usually that she was quiet and unassuming, she had strong opinions and could become quite lively when a particular subject piqued her interest. Sometimes, I could tell that Norma had had enough of people worrying about her health and well-being – rather than burdening us with her own problems, Norma was much more inclined to ask how we were doing, what was new with us. I don’t think Norma was ever very interested in talking about herself - what she cared about most were her family, friends, and the world around her. Whenever she was presented with a situation that might simply frustrate others, Norma was a model of dignity, perseverance, and grit. "Good enough," she'd often calmly say.

At the end of the day, Norma was someone who just seemed to take comfort in the feeling that she was surrounded by family. Even when her hearing deteriorated to the point where it was all but impossible to talk on the phone, she still looked forward to our weekly phone calls – just knowing that she was connected to us in some way made her happy. It was the same when we visited her in Rhode Island and later in Boston – even when the conversation died down and we were just lounging around , you could tell she was simply enjoying the fact that we were all there together.

We will all miss Norma. Thanks for reading, everyone.