My Grandpa

Being the oldest of 39 grandchildren has afforded me opportunities - I think - unique from others in our family. Opportunities, for which, I will always be grateful. I probably didn't realize how much Grandpa has meant to me throughout my life until last night, when I cut his obituary out of the newspaper.





Grandpa has always been a shining example to me, for good, and never failed in showing me the higher road I hope I'm equally able to show my children. But more than anything, I remember the great times we had together.

I remember:

• Fishing with Grandpa, on numerous occasions: Blackfoot, American Falls, the Portneuf, and Newton, Grandpa loved to fish. I'm proud to say he taught me how to do it right (with spark plugs).
  
• Carl's Fine Cars, sodas at Bountiful Drug, digging for worms at Bountiful Jr. High, and quite a few meetings the beautiful old Tabernacle.
  
• Riding in Ol' Blue, Ol' Brown Blue, and Ol' Blue 2. Some of life's most important lessons can be learned on the road.
  
• Helping President Denny to organize missionary affairs. Funny how those few days in Albuquerque have had such a lasting effect on me and my outlook on life.
  
• Hours and hours of popcorn-filled nights, I don't remember Grandpa ever beating me at Backgammon. Strange, since he's the one that taught me how to play.
  
• Grandpa's stories of the times he spent with his Grandpa. It sure sounded fun to teach a man to drive, when instincts were to holler "Woah!" in order to get the car (horse) to stop.
  
• Learning that upholding strong morals make for a happy life. I'm eternally indebted to Grandpa and Grandma for teaching me firmly that families can be forever.
  
• Christmas, Thanksgiving, and birthdays, with tables stretching across three full rooms. Happiness in those days was finally being invited to eat at the Grown-up Table.
  
• Spanish discussions at the dinner table. "Marcos, pasa por favor la sal," convinced me that speaking Spanish was a skill that all successful people had better acquire.
  
• Quizzing Grandpa on the piles and piles of books that he always seemed to work though. So much reading, reading, reading, and finding few of the classics he hadn't yet read.
  
• Watching Grandpa talk with strangers everywhere. He always seemed to worry more about others' comfort before he considered his own. Why else would he allow cats to take over his house?
  
• Watching Grandpa come to grips with Parkinson's as he struggled to fix Ol' Blue in the early 90's. What a humbling, debilitating, straight-out-of-hell disease. I hated watching Grandpa suffer through those long and final years and I'm finally relieved that Grandpa's finally relieved.
  

After looking back and listing some of the things I remember about Grandpa, I'm not so sure I was alone in my experiences. Then again, he always was good at making you feel like you were the only one in the world that mattered.