hands of a good life

these hands

have been touching lives for 87 years
have been a loving father to 6 children, 25 grandchildren,
57 great-grandchildren, & 3 great-great grandchildren
served this country in WWII
worked several jobs at a time to provide for his family
became the tickle monster at sleepovers
served me and my cousins "tea" at our tea parties
brushed back my hair as he told me, "you get prettier every time i see you"
fixed many things in everyone's houses
built me a wooden rocking horse for my very first christmas
and so much more...

we buried my grandpa only 2 weeks after i took this picture with him and my baby boy. i'm so happy that i was able to see him before he left this life.

i was blessed to be able to attend my grandpa's funeral and celebrate the life of a good man. we laughed and cried as we reflected on his life. i knew my grandfather was a good man when he was alive, but i learned more things about him at his funeral to help me understand just how wonderful of a man he was. there were so many stories of my grandpa, but i will share with you the one that stood out in my mind and the story that i think epitomizes my grandpa's life.

my dad's brother, bob, contracted polio when he was a only 4-years-old. he had to stay in the hospital for 3 weeks and at that time parents were not allowed to stay overnight in the hospital. bob told his dad {my grandpa} that he was very scared to stay all by himself and he wanted his daddy to stay. my grandpa told bob that he would never leave him and to just look out his hospital window and he would be right there. my uncle bob said that before he would go to sleep at night, he would look out his window and his daddy was there...if he got up through the night or no matter what time he woke in the morning, my grandpa was sleeping there on the lawn outside the hospital. he did this every night for 3 weeks.


matthew 6:21 states, For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. my grandpa's treasure was his family. i not only witnessed this indirectly, but also first hand. i love my grandpa with all my heart and hearing of his life and knowing that perhaps he's watching over me makes we want to live a little better and walk a little taller. i love you grandpa.