My Grandpa

My grandpa passed away somewhat unexpectadly the day before Thanksgiving.  He had had a bit of a rough time recently- he had his bladder removed because of bladder cancer, had a very tough recovery, and then needed his gall bladder removed because of infection. The surgery itself went well, and grandpa was doing great, but he was given food too soon. This caused him to choke in the middle of the night and aspirate into his lungs. Essentially, a nurse's mistake killed my Pop. Very disheartening.

Grandpa was 89 years old, but you would never have guessed it. He was by far the most brilliant man I knew. He was a Latin scholar when he was younger, worked rigorous crossword puzzles, and read multiple books a day. His mind was completely in tact, and his memory was amazing.

Beside the cancer, his body was in great shape. He walked frequently and worked out at the rehab facility multiple times a week. After his initial surgery, he complained to the doctors because he wasn't getting worked hard enough! He prided himself in keeping his body in great working order.

Grandpa not only took care of himself, but he took care of others as well. He was the oldest of 9 siblings, and while he was in high school, he was boarded out to a farm family during the week in order to have food and shelter. Later in his life, he had three daughters and worked hard to provide for them. He passed on his desire to become a doctor in order to keep a stable job for his family- he didn't think he could support his girls while also attending school. I wish he had.

Grandpa wasn't an outwardly emotional man, in fact he was pretty quiet. In the last few years, though, he opened up as he told stories of his childhood and younger days. I learned many things about him that I had never known. The predominant theme of his life was certainly "family" but I loved learning about his other passions, interests, and previous jobs- cooking (oh he was amazing!), farming, delivering milk, etc.

This year, Pop was blessed with three more great grandchildren (all boys!) and two on the way. He loved holding and seeing "his" babies grow. I'll never forget the last time I saw him- Gabe fell asleep early (dinner time) and stayed asleep the whole drive to Grandpa's. He continued to sleep while we were there, which NEVER happens, and when he woke up, he sat on Grandpa's lap for a good 15 minutes. For anyone who knows Gabe, this is extremely rare. He is so active, but when he wakes up, he only wants his Mommy. We couldn't believe he let Grandpa hold him, so still, for so long.

Pop, we will miss you dearly, but we are trusting that we will see you again. Your time was cut too short, but your memory will live on forever. We love you, respect you, and will strive to be more like you!