What We Leave Behind Matters
What losing my Grandfather is teaching me about love
My grandfather is dying. He has fought a valiant battle but cancer has nearly won.
Right now, my mother and her siblings are preparing to say goodbye to their father. The man who has been their rock for their entire lives. They are taking him home from the hospital to be with his wife and to allow for some dignity as he passes. His grandchildren are trying to come to grips with an imminent loss of a true force in their lives. My grandmother is not ready to admit defeat and is struggling to hang on.
We are losing a part of us and no one seems quite ready for it.
My grandfather is a hometown hero. He was born here in our tiny town and lived out most of his days here. He was sent overseas after being drafted in the Vietnam War and returned here after the death of his brother. When he got home he helped to care for his brother’s widow and 4 children, eventually, he married her and cared for her children as his own. They, together, had one more child before calling their family complete.
Papa, as we call him, taught his children and later his grandchildren to stand up when they got knocked down and to put family over everything. He demanded strength, honesty, and respect (especially for his wife). Now that his…
