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So today was the saddest Valentine's Day I've ever had. No, it wasn't because of being single, or a breakup, or anything like that. Today was the day I laid my grandfather to rest.
If you don't care for stories about people, then this isn't for you. Otherwise continue reading, hope you enjoy.
He was a great man. He was fiercely loyal to his family. He married my grandmother on January 3rd, 1963, and she said not once did he ever raise his voice to her while they were married. He never missed a birthday, he never missed a Christmas, Thanksgiving, or even a Valentine's day. Every year for 56yrs he would buy my grandmother a heart box of Fannie May chocolates. She looked forward to receiving them, and would make each one last until the next Valentine's Day. When he passed, she was upset that she wouldn't be able to receive a box from him, she cherished the things he got her. Two weeks prior to his passing he bought her one last Valentine's Day box and a card that he wrote in and signed, in case this very thing happened to him. He would refer to her as his wife and bride. They had that touching old people relationship.
When I was little he would take me fishing. He hated fishing and he hated fish, but he would ask if I wanted to go fishing. We would get up at the crack of dawn and we'd go fishing, he'd watch me fish for hours until I was ready to go, and he did the same with my younger cousin. When I was younger, he would pin me down and tickle me until I was crying. That kind of tickling where it's fun at first and then just feels like torture, but you're still having fun. I think the oldest memory I have of him is when I was younger, he would tie a sled to the back of his lawnmower and pull me around on it while mowing his yard. I remember loving going for rides while he mowed.
He was a hard worker. He worked up until he was got sick in 2018 and had to get treatment. Prior to his passing, he was looking forward to getting better and going back to work! He was a stubborn old man and didn't like anything keeping him down. He was a semi driver for 40-50yrs, and owned his own truck. He eventually got tired of owning his own truck and sold it, but continued to be a truck driver for a metal scrap yard. He liked to work, and provide for his family.
If my grandfather was, if nothing else, a jokester. He joked with everyone, he loved to give people a hard time. It was hard for him to really not like anyone, very few people did he truly dislike. When someone would greet him and use his name, he had a smartass reply. "Who the hell wants to know?" He had a number of replies on the ready just to give people a difficult time, and it was always fun.
As I came to learn over the past week earlier in life he liked to drag race. Which explained why he likes cars so much. He was a member of his town's car club, he liked going to car shows, and he was working on his own older car. Although, I forget what type of car he was working on on. During the summer when I was younger we would was his truck every few weeks, by hand. He did not like car washes and said why pay to wash your car when you can do it yourself and do it better. He has a point.
The things I learned from him when I was younger have stuck with me. When he would work on his semi during the weekends when he was home, I'd be helping him. Using a driver to take off lug nuts from his semi when the tires were bigger than myself, how to grease the engine and breaks, how to attach and detach a trailer to the fifth wheel — the part of the semi that the trailer connects to.
However, what sticks the most is the integrity, determination that he taught me and demonstrated in his life. When he said he was going to do something, he did it. He was physically strong, but he also had strong integrity. He was a man of character.
We learned while going through my grandmother's stuff that she had, we've found many photos stashed in envelops here, there, and everywhere. We found photos that none of us knew even existed. Their wedding day photos, their first anniversary photos, a random photo of him here and one in particular with an expression on his face of, "why are you taking this photo?" His wedding day photos were the only time he ever wore a tux, ever. It had that cute couple look to it, with my grandmother just smiling a big ol' smile on her face, and he was grinning too. I always knew him as a big guy with white hair, so it was crazy to see him in his younger days with a full head of brown hair and much leaner.
I saw my grandfather for the first time since 2009 in October of 2018. I'm glad I did. I was visiting for a week in October and much of that time was spent with him. It's time I'll always remember. Because of his age and treatment he was having a harder time getting around, he walked much slower. I would always pause and wait for him to catch up, it wasn't a big deal. While I was visiting in October, I remember him making a statement, he said that he's not able to get around as well as he use to, and that he felt bad that he couldn't do more with me like when I was younger and that he hoped I understood. It broke me inside. Of course I understood, and it didn't bother me one bit.
He was a kind person and he will be missed, but not forgotten.
 Knight Yoshi · Fri Feb 15, 2019 @ 02:44am · 4 Comments |
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