My Grandpa

Eighty years. I’ve only been a part of twenty six of them but have a plethora of stories from that minor fraction of his life. I think I can best describe my Grandpa as a Renaissance Man. My Grandpa is an author, an editor, a contractor, a painter, a sculptor, an architect, a landscaper, a businessman, a student, a teacher, a statesman, a martial arts instructor, a historian, a movie aficionado, an explorer, an outdoorsman, a fan, an athlete, a coach, a patriarch, a guide, and a counselor. The list goes on. But for all his titles and successes, I believe that if you were to ask him, he would be most proud of his titles of Husband, Father, Grandfather, and Great-Grandfather.

My Grandpa is a family man. And, as this blog attests, he has been very successful at it. Almost every memory of significant life events includes his smiling face. But, even more importantly, a surplus of memories of small and minor moments hold that same grinning mug.
Ask me who I imagine sitting at the other end of a chess table:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine throwing a Frisbee with at the park in Cambria:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine will always be my swimming buddy:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine standing next to as we watch Old Faithful come to life:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine flying in a balloon with:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine will always turn my name into an animated story character:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine will turn a pancake into any shape imaginable:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine will debate politics with me:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine will teach by example how to be a good husband, father, friend, and priesthood holder:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I imagine will share personal and spiritual stories with me for my own edification:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who will make me feel intelligent, wanted, and important:
my Grandpa.
Ask me who I love:
my Grandpa.

Happy 80th Birthday Grandpa. You are many things to me, and, like everyone else writing here, you are a part of me. And I treasure that part.