Before he left for heaven, Grandpa wanted
all his monthly bills paid and his yard mowed.
As I watched my husband and son carry a large recliner chair into the family room and place it in the middle of the floor, my first thought was, “Well, it certainly blends in with our dark brown leather couch and the over-sized brown chair and matching ottoman.”
While father and son waited a moment to catch their breath, my husband observed, “I don’t think this chair will fit in her bedroom,” nodding toward our teenaged daughter’s room.
During the 20 years I had known my father-in-law, he had owned several recliners, and when our 15-year-old daughter had urged her father to bring home “Grandpa’s chair” after his passing, I couldn’t quite picture his current chair. During the last year or so, Grandpa had also used an electronic chair that made getting up and down easier.
As I looked over the chair with its handsome brown leather, I told my husband, “We can make room for the chair in here. Let’s keep it in here.”
A few moments later our daughter entered the room and gave her approval to leave the chair in the family room. But before the chair could be moved to a designated place, she sat down and leaned back in the chair, and ran her hands lovingly across the smooth leather. Smiling with satisfaction and leaning back once more, she announced, “This chair even smells like Grandpa’s house.”
As I stood there watching my daughter basking in the comfort of her grandfather’s chair, and then, reluctantly, let her brother have a turn sitting in it, I was suddenly struck by the qualities the chair shared with its former occupant.
Crafted to be a strong, durable piece of furniture, the chair was covered with a high grade leather, finished with a smooth sheen and comfortable surface. Free of all pretense, and with a deep and abiding love for God and his family, Grandpa was just as genuine as that leather-- a man who could be trusted and whose honesty could be avowed by his family and community. A hard worker all his life, he was still putting his handyman skills to use at the age of 90. With a voice that was naturally a little gruff, surprisingly the same voice took on a pleasant and cheerful tone when he made phone calls to our home.
Both history buffs, our children were intrigued with their grandfather's birth year, 1917, and enjoyed quizzing him about some of the historical events of that time period. In some ways, he was like grandfather and great-grandfather to his two youngest grandchildren.
Married to one woman for 67 years, Grandpa and Grandma had renewed their wedding vows in honor of their 65th anniversary, and two years later, Grandma passed on. For the last three years of his life, Grandpa had lived alone. Our daughter talked frequently about her concern for him and worried that he was missing Grandma.
A few months before his 92nd birthday, an unrelenting bout of pneumonia drained physical strength from Grandpa’s body. Weeks turned into months as Grandpa fought to regain his strength. My husband and daughter frequently made overnight visits to Grandpa’s, and it was during these visits that the bond between Grandpa and his youngest granddaughter forged even stronger.
Married to one woman for 67 years, Grandpa and Grandma had renewed their wedding vows in honor of their 65th anniversary, and two years later, Grandma passed on. For the last three years of his life, Grandpa had lived alone. Our daughter talked frequently about her concern for him and worried that he was missing Grandma.
A few months before his 92nd birthday, an unrelenting bout of pneumonia drained physical strength from Grandpa’s body. Weeks turned into months as Grandpa fought to regain his strength. My husband and daughter frequently made overnight visits to Grandpa’s, and it was during these visits that the bond between Grandpa and his youngest granddaughter forged even stronger.
And although work and school kept our teenaged son from visiting as often, we found out after the fact that our son, who had just turned 18, made the out-of-state trip alone to visit Grandpa in the hospital. Upon his arrival at the hospital, Grandpa dismissed his physical therapist and daily treatment, telling the therapist that he had to visit with his grandson. Grandpa kept his grandson’s secret for a few days until we were told about the visit. Neither his dad nor I had a word of reprimand for him. Our son had caught the undercurrent of concern when we gave him progress reports on Grandpa and just needed to see him.
As his body grew weaker, the strength of Grandpa’s character remained as strong as ever. Upon reaching his 92nd birthday, Grandpa announced he was ready to move on to heaven. But before he left, he wanted all his monthly bills paid and his yard mowed. And that’s the way he left this earth, with all his affairs in order.
A few weeks later, when the family was to gather at Grandpa’s house to divide up his furniture, our daughter begged her dad to ask for Grandpa’s chair. And now that chair has a special place of honor in our home.
We don’t use Grandpa’s chair as a lounging chair but rather a chair to sit in occasionally, or just in passing it, remember a man who lived through the uncertain times of two World Wars and the Great Depression, holding to the faith and values he learned from his own parents and leaving a hertitage of faith and the same values to his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
We don’t use Grandpa’s chair as a lounging chair but rather a chair to sit in occasionally, or just in passing it, remember a man who lived through the uncertain times of two World Wars and the Great Depression, holding to the faith and values he learned from his own parents and leaving a hertitage of faith and the same values to his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
B
