Grandparents

I've been thinking of Grandpa, who passed away last week. Emily's grandparents died within about a month of each other also, and I think they probably had a pretty similar marriage. We just had our 11th wedding anniversary, so I've been thinking about what makes marriages tick and how people try to grow together (and as individuals) over a lifetime. I've been very grateful for the way family have kept us in the loop, and shared stories with us. I enjoyed hearing that Grandpa was working on his tomato plants the day he died. I'd heard a quote something like this, and just searched for it and it's an apocryphal Luther saying: "If I knew that tomorrow was the end of the world, I would plant an apple tree today." We don't have so much control over our end, but I really admire the way Grandpa and Grandma has such full lives right up until their last days. A book I'd shared with my dad talks about "dying well" as a practice that Christians should seek. Obviously there are limits on this, but one way we prepare is through our family. I was really impressed with how my Dad and Nancy navigated the last week of Grandma's life and then looked out for Grandpa during the funeral and afterwards. We are sad we weren't able to get back in time. I feel like with kids we're a slow moving boat. Changing directions brings us to a full stop and we just can't transition as quickly as we used to be able to. I think the trip to the retreat location just about did us all in, so we knew we couldn't get back in time. I hope we're nimbler and lighter on our feet in the years ahead, but for now it's a struggle to get to B from A. I think Grandpa probably would have understood. I admire him for a lot of the transitions he made in life. It was fun several years back to see his old town in Pennsylvania, where he grew up swimming in rivers and playing in the streets. To move from that to war, marriage, and the big city in just months must have been really challenging. I admire also a lot of the things he tried in life. I'm glad he could cook, and enjoyed travel after retirement, and developed such a close network of friends. I'm sad I can't be back for the funeral, but am grateful that I got to know my grandfather over several decades. I'm looking forward to seeing the home where they lived together for so long and to catch up family.