Welch Whirl

It took me 23 years. . .

It took me 23 years to get a Grandpa. Well two actually. When I married into Ben's family I acquired two by marriage. But as fate would have it we lived near only one, Grandpa Lee. I've been thinking about what a grandpa is and what they do for us. Because I never had a living grandpa before, I had no idea what role they would play in our lives.

On Tuesday, 5 of December, we held a funeral for Grandpa Lee. I had a fantastic Grandpa for 6 very short years.

The absolute best part about his funeral was my desire to be more like him. To be better myself, to be stronger, to make more friends, to make smart decisions, to love more people, to be physically healthy, and to always be surrounded by family while doing these things. It was a great feeling to walk away with.

After my short stint with a Grandpa in my life, I can now say that a grandpa is the one that teaches us how to drive the off road vehicles. He is the one that lets you use his truck for moving. He is the one that shows up to your backyard with his special greenhouse tomatoes, ready to plant. He is the one that notifies you that your walk is too icy and recommends a solution. He is the one that enjoys a good meal with a short story to follow. Grandpa is the one that always knew the scores to the big games. He is the one that gives you all the purple cabbage, zucchini, cantaloupe you can eat out of his own garden. He is the one that holds my newborns carefully in his arms making sure his big hands don't let go. He is the one that pushes the kids in the tire swing in the backyard. He is the one telling us to pick the peaches out of the trees. (Grandma is the one telling us how to can them.) Grandpa never had to say what he thought of us Grandkids. He did it with his actions.

My mother-in-law, Michele introduced me to Ruby Chacon's artwork a few months back. Michele bought a piece to put up at the Welch Cabin. It reminds me of Grandpa Lee, so much.
You can find the painting on her website, in the slide show it is the fourth painting entitled Abuelo. It is wonderful.
http://www.rubychacon.com/ruby_chacon.htm

For those of you with Grandpas still living, I hope you have not taken for granted the fun role they can play in your life as well as your children's lives.

Our lives are continuing peacefully without him. Although we miss that he has not been physically to the recent concerts, games, and dance recitals lately, but there is no doubt in my mind that he knows about all that we are up to. He is watching over us daily, making sure that we are making the right decisions and caring for his little wife, Grandma Muriel.

Can there be a better Grandpa?
What a legacy to leave behind.

I do have one hope for him. I hope that he has met my two grandpas that have been in Heaven for a long time. I hope that they become friends. I hope that the three of them can find a horse shoe pit somewhere, eat sun flower seeds, and talk about their grandchildren and great grandchildren together.