Remembering the party...
As a sad sorrow hits my family, I once again turn to my blog as an outlet for my emotions. My Grandpa Kenny went to heaven this past Saturday. His funeral will be at the end of this week. I find writing to be the perfect way to express myself in moments like these. I wrote something special for my Grandma and Grandpa Williams when they too went to heaven. And now I pay respect and honor to my Grandpa Kenny with a blog in his memory. I also plan to read this at his funeral, as I did for my other grandparents.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, and whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
-John 3:16
This was the first bible verse I ever memorized as a child. Now that I am an adult I can see why this is the first verse we are taught. This verse gives comfort, strength, and understanding in so many instances of life. Today, it gives me comfort. For I know, as do any one who knew my Grandpa Kenny, he is in heaven today. One of the best memories and facts that I know about my grandpa is that he was a Christian who is now no longer in pain, but enjoying his eternal life with the Lord and those who went before him. It gives me comfort to know that Saturday ended his pain, and began his life of eternal joy. That when he entered the gates, I know that Grandma Eva was waiting for him with open arms greeting her son with an embrace. They are rejoicing together, and that makes me smile.
My heart is filled with sorrow at the loss of such a wonderful man. He was a man that impacted my life as he did many others. The sadness seems to overwhelm you if you will let it. Instead of thinking about the loss today, I will try to focus on the happy memories that I am left with of my grandpa. Those will never go away. They are the gift from the Lord that I will cherish for the rest of my life. I thought I would share a few of them with you today so that you could see a glimpse of the man who I remember, love, and call grandpa.
When I think of Grandpa Kenny, the first thing that always comes to mind is his laugh. I don't think I ever visited the man where I didn't see a big smile and hear that hearty laugh of his. He liked to laugh, joke around, and tell stories. I always loved it when the men would get him going on stories from the past. Dad and Uncle John could always get him laughing about some adventure the three of them had experienced while helping grandpa farm or work. One of the all time favorite stories would have to be when grandpa was driving a heavily loaded truck with beans home for supper. We would all get laughing when they reminisced of how he sped over that bridge, didn't look back, went off the road a few times, and lost so many beans just so they wouldn't be late for supper.
When I think of grandpa's driving, I seem to always linger on the memory of an icy winter day that had been filled with sledding. Grandma Flo and Grandpa Kenny live on a road that has a wonderful hill that would ice over beautifully to make it the perfect place to ride a sled. Nick and I have had a few experiences sledding on their road that we won't soon forget. It was around noon on a day that we had spent all morning on that hill. The time had come for lunch with the family, and it was Grandpa's job to go get Grandma Eva. There was too much snow and ice for her to walk down the hill as she normally did. Grandpa set off down the driveway in his truck, backed onto the street, gave it some gas, and took off up the hill. And then found himself sliding backwards down the hill. So it gave it some more gas and went back up the hill. Annnnnnnd slid back down the hill again. So this time he backed up even further and gave it even more gas, and finally he made it up that hill. We all gathered around the window and watched and laughed the entire time. We actually wondered if he stopped at the top or just kept sliding on over the hill and down the other side. But soon enough, here he came back down with grandma.
As I said before my grandpa always seemed to be laughing and enjoying himself. As a small child I noticed this right away. Every time the family got together we laughed and really had a great time. A joke that I have shared with my grandpa all these years originated when I was young. After another fun filled visit with family, I patted grandpa on the back and said 'What a party, Grandpa!' He found such humor in that statement coming out of such a young girl, that it stuck. Every time we parted ways from there on I patted him on the back and said 'What a party, Grandpa!' And if he could get it in first he would pat me on the back and say 'What a party, Erin!' It was our little inside joke that never got old. As I stand here today I wish that I could pat him on the back once more. It pains me to say that I can not. But it warms my heart to know that his life was the party. He enjoyed his life every step of the way. And the really great news is, his party has really only just begun. So I say one last time, 'What a party, Grandpa!'
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, and whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
-John 3:16
This was the first bible verse I ever memorized as a child. Now that I am an adult I can see why this is the first verse we are taught. This verse gives comfort, strength, and understanding in so many instances of life. Today, it gives me comfort. For I know, as do any one who knew my Grandpa Kenny, he is in heaven today. One of the best memories and facts that I know about my grandpa is that he was a Christian who is now no longer in pain, but enjoying his eternal life with the Lord and those who went before him. It gives me comfort to know that Saturday ended his pain, and began his life of eternal joy. That when he entered the gates, I know that Grandma Eva was waiting for him with open arms greeting her son with an embrace. They are rejoicing together, and that makes me smile.
My heart is filled with sorrow at the loss of such a wonderful man. He was a man that impacted my life as he did many others. The sadness seems to overwhelm you if you will let it. Instead of thinking about the loss today, I will try to focus on the happy memories that I am left with of my grandpa. Those will never go away. They are the gift from the Lord that I will cherish for the rest of my life. I thought I would share a few of them with you today so that you could see a glimpse of the man who I remember, love, and call grandpa.
When I think of Grandpa Kenny, the first thing that always comes to mind is his laugh. I don't think I ever visited the man where I didn't see a big smile and hear that hearty laugh of his. He liked to laugh, joke around, and tell stories. I always loved it when the men would get him going on stories from the past. Dad and Uncle John could always get him laughing about some adventure the three of them had experienced while helping grandpa farm or work. One of the all time favorite stories would have to be when grandpa was driving a heavily loaded truck with beans home for supper. We would all get laughing when they reminisced of how he sped over that bridge, didn't look back, went off the road a few times, and lost so many beans just so they wouldn't be late for supper.
When I think of grandpa's driving, I seem to always linger on the memory of an icy winter day that had been filled with sledding. Grandma Flo and Grandpa Kenny live on a road that has a wonderful hill that would ice over beautifully to make it the perfect place to ride a sled. Nick and I have had a few experiences sledding on their road that we won't soon forget. It was around noon on a day that we had spent all morning on that hill. The time had come for lunch with the family, and it was Grandpa's job to go get Grandma Eva. There was too much snow and ice for her to walk down the hill as she normally did. Grandpa set off down the driveway in his truck, backed onto the street, gave it some gas, and took off up the hill. And then found himself sliding backwards down the hill. So it gave it some more gas and went back up the hill. Annnnnnnd slid back down the hill again. So this time he backed up even further and gave it even more gas, and finally he made it up that hill. We all gathered around the window and watched and laughed the entire time. We actually wondered if he stopped at the top or just kept sliding on over the hill and down the other side. But soon enough, here he came back down with grandma.
As I said before my grandpa always seemed to be laughing and enjoying himself. As a small child I noticed this right away. Every time the family got together we laughed and really had a great time. A joke that I have shared with my grandpa all these years originated when I was young. After another fun filled visit with family, I patted grandpa on the back and said 'What a party, Grandpa!' He found such humor in that statement coming out of such a young girl, that it stuck. Every time we parted ways from there on I patted him on the back and said 'What a party, Grandpa!' And if he could get it in first he would pat me on the back and say 'What a party, Erin!' It was our little inside joke that never got old. As I stand here today I wish that I could pat him on the back once more. It pains me to say that I can not. But it warms my heart to know that his life was the party. He enjoyed his life every step of the way. And the really great news is, his party has really only just begun. So I say one last time, 'What a party, Grandpa!'
Thank you Erin!! This made me laugh and cry...you have such a wonderful way with words and a gift for saying just the right thing. The best yet!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a beautiful tribute. I meant to leave this comment last week when I first read this. You are so blessed to have known your grandparents.
ReplyDelete