EDNA'S AMAZING GRACE INSPIRES

JACKSON -- Matthew Hopkins doesn't understand why a clock that is older than his 100-year-old grandmother, Edna, continues to tick and chime on schedule.

Machines aren't supposed to do that. And people aren't supposed to be around long enough to call furniture handed down to them valuable antiques.

"People have asked me to sell that clock because they consider it a rare antique, but I just say I'm not interested," Edna Hopkins said, resplendent in a bright blue sweat suit. "To me it's always been the strikin' clock," she said as her soft facial features afforded her a look of dignity.

Even more amazing to Matthew, 31, is the fact the family's matriarch managed to completely recover from a stroke she suffered seven years ago.

Her willpower and buoyant flair for life are traits the family will behold and cherish anew when they pick her up for another Mother's Day dinner celebration today.

"Her speech was affected by the stroke, but as you can tell she's got everything back," Matthew said with an appreciative smile. "Did she tell you that she has only been in the hospital three times in her life? Once when she had my dad, another time when she had a mastectomy and the third time when she had a stroke."

As he said this, Matthew craned his neck to see if his grandmother, sitting in an easy chair across the room, heard him.

"Did you hear what I just said grandma?" he asked. She shook her head. "With all that racket going on out there, I'm having a little bit of trouble," she said, nodding in the direction of workers rebuilding her porch. "Those hammers just rip right through this hearing aid." She punctuated the moment with a soft laugh.

The new porch is part of the place she has called home in Jackson for the last 48 years. Prior to moving into town, she lived on a family farm on the outskirts of Jackson. The pictures that adorn the inside of the home just never seem to look right anyplace else.

"I like to look at my pictures sometimes at night when there's not much on the television," she said, reaching for a photo of her as grand marshal of a Veteran's Day parade. "I was the first woman named grand marshal."

The threat of being taken away from her comfortable surroundings came in 1988 with the stroke.

"I stayed in a nursing home for two months when I had the stroke, but after I started to get better I said `I want to come back here,'" she said. "My doctor gave me a checkup and said there was no reason why I shouldn't come back."

She is back to her busy schedule: a daily trip to the senior nutrition center in Jackson, a frequent visit to the American Legion Hall and a Sunday night filled with card playing. Oh, and she plans to participate in the Miles for Meals walk at the Jackson City Park, an event to benefit senior citizens who require meals delivered to their homes.

Matthew is having fun walking through some of his grandmother's interesting stories.

"Remember the time when Ben was driving everybody to the card game and you told him to stop because he was headed for the ditch?" Matthew asked. "Oh, Ben," she said, quickly dismissing such a recollection with a wave of her hand. "Those things happen sometimes."

To Edna Hopkins, family is the fuel that keeps her feeling vibrant and with a sense of purpose.

She had her first son, John, when she was 42. "That's him over there," she said, pointing to a picture that included her son, grandson, Matthew, and great-grandson, Justin.

"I had to wait 98 years for my first grandson, but it was worth it," she said with an owlish glance at Matthew. "She came to the hospital when he was born," Matthew said. "That meant so much to me."

She didn't just show up for her grandson's wedding. Edna also danced at the reception. "How many 96-year-old grandmothers would be able to do that?" he asked.

Matthew wanted to talk about the vegetable garden Edna made famous. "You won a few prizes at the SEMO District Fair with your pickles and beans and things," he said. "Every time for 26 years and then the last four I just stopped going," she said. "But we don't need to talk about that."

Asked how many vegetables she grew in her garden, Edna decided she had dwelled on the subject too long. "Oh, now don't go putting that in the story, people will think I'm crazy or something," she said.

No one thinks Edna Hopkins is crazy. Many, however, admire her sense of independence. The workers who were stopped by a reporter who inquired whether Edna was at home offered a knowing grin.

"She was supposed to be back by 1, but I guess she's having too much fun selling those poppies for the American Legion," said one worker.

Matthew is certainly aware of his grandmother's busy schedule. "If you don't make an appointment, you're probably not going to find her here," he said. "This is the second time I stopped by here today and I'm lucky I found her at home."

There are those who feel lucky to spend time with Edna Hopkins. "When I turned 100, I said I wanted to have an hour talking to Rush Limbaugh Sr. at his office," she said. "I got up to leave after the hour was up and he said `hey, we've got more to talk about.'"

Edna Hopkins would show pictures of her husband, Ora, who died 12 years ago. She had a snapshot of the hotel room at Lodge of the Four Seasons where she and her husband stayed in 1967. "I won that trip in a contest held at the Cape," she said.

She even had a birthday card sent to her from President Clinton, recognizing May 7, 1995 as the day she turned 100. "I got one last year, too," she said. "I guess maybe they didn't think I'd make it to 100."

She knew. So did Matthew. Name the family tradition and Edna Hopkins continues to do it. "Every Christmas she cooks my favorite meal, chicken and dumplings," Matthew said.

The grandfather clock chimed once again, announcing the hour of 3 p.m. "It's supposed to chime three times, but I don't even know how it is able to chime once," he said.

After casting a glance at his grandmother, he added, "Some things you just can't explain. You just enjoy them, over and over again."