Memories

My grandpa has been really sick and has been in the hospital for the last 3 weeks. The doctor’s have told him that there isn’t anything else they can do for him so it’s just a matter of time I guess. He says he’s ready to die and he prays for it every night. I guess some days he’s in quite a bit of pain.

Anyway, with him being sick and everything I just keep thinking about all the stuff we used to do when I was a kid. He used to push his top teeth out and then suck them back in and he got me to try it. I thought that everyone could do that, I didn’t know he had dentures. I would sit there pushing on the back of my teeth as hard as I could but I couldn’t get my teeth to pop out like his. He used to just laugh and laugh when I did this. I was so gullible.

And our phone conversations always started off the same way:

Grandpa: “How ya doin honey?”

Me: “Pretty good.”

Grandpa: “Well, I knew the first part, I’ve always thought you were pretty. I don’t know about being good though. I still think your pretty onery!”

And he’ll just laugh after he says that. I don’t know why he thinks it’s so funny but he does.

And he always calls me Kimberley Clark! He’s called me that for as long as I remember. He even used to address letters and cards that way… Kimberley Anne Clark… He still calls me that too.

So far he’s still in the hospital and not doing very well. I’m gonna try and call him again tonight to see how he’s feeling. I just don’t think I’m ready for him to go but there’s nothing I can do to stop it.

Sorry for the long post. I just wanted to share a couple of memories of my grandpa and this seemed like an appropriate place.

Hey Rachelle? You decide you want a hug, I’m your man.

I’ll take a hug from you anyday Mr. Cynical! Thanks.

Rachelle, your grandpa sounds like a wonderful man. Hold those memories tight to your heart and it will help you over the next little while with what is to come. Take Care.

Uh oh, is this a kodak moment in the making.

But seriously Rachelle, I am genuinely sorry to hear about your granpa. I went through this, wow-almost 2 years ago now, with my grammy (that’s what I called my grandmother) and it’s a horrible time. And she just kept hangin on so long which only made it harder.

Emphasize the positive times hun.

to have had enough time with him to have such strong memories. I lost my grandparents by the time I was 11. Now all the memories are so faded I only remember them as shadows. They filter in and out without any specific beginning or end. That story of the dentures is so fun that I want to adopt it as my own. Rachelle, the love will never fade. The memories will become a part of your greater memory, just a part of who you are. But, the love will never fade.