It's been one week and it still doesn't quite feel real.
Our family Patriarch passed away quietly at 2:50 a.m. on Sunday, December 11th and I'll miss him forever. He passed away from various health complications but kept his sharp wit and independent will right up until the end. He was a fighter, but the exhaustion caused by weeks of sleepless nights convinced him otherwise. He was a great man and I am grateful he was a part of my life.
I'll always remember or try to always remember:
1. His big ears. I remember as a child being at their home on the lake and they always had a bag of Lays Original Potato Chips. I'd pull out the biggest chip I could find and he'd make a joke about that potato chip being as big as his ear and that, " I got his ear!". It made me laugh, and I still think of it often when I find a large Lays chip in my hand.
2. Tonic Water. They also always had tonic water for the traditional Vodka Tonic beverage everyone would enjoy...being only pint-sized I was only allowed the tonic water. But I loved it, and still do. Last week I was able to take home one of the cups that I have many tonic water memories in. It's a silly item to want but it's sentimental value is priceless.
3. Doctor Sicky. When I lived in my childhood home in Federal Way I recall Granddad picking me up to take me to see "Doctor Sicky" as I suppose I was feeling ill. I only saw that Doctor that one time and for years and years I thought that Doctor's name was actually "Doctor Sicky" until the light bulb went off that Granddad was joking.
4. Christmas. He always wore a red or green sweater and they always wrapped their gifts with plaid wrapping paper--always making sure the lines of the wrapping paper met up with one another properly.
5. The dining room at the lake house is where I have many, many memories. Birthdays, dinners, BBQ's....all centered around that room. We drank from Grandma's crystal stemware, always raising a glass to toast someone or something and if it was a birthday, you could count on cake and ice cream.
6. Gingerbread Men. Grandma used to always give us a gingerbread man cookie when we said goodbye. It was a special treat and I've only once tasted a cookie that was similar to the ones she gave us.
7. He always said, "on the thing", as a filler. He also said "take care, "bye-bye", "Hello Dear", and once called Katie Holmes a lush. He liked to keep up on the celebrity gossip.
8. The white Mercedes. I don't know where we went but I have a memory of Granddad and Grandma D. picking up my brother and I and taking us down Pacific Highway in their white Mercedes. I remember I liked the back seat cargo holder because it was like a stretchy net.
9. The Station Wagon. Granddad always drove a Station Wagon...until they traded in the Wagon and the Mercedes for a HUGE Cadillac with heated seats, a 12-CD changer; the works!
10. Spearmint Lifesavors. When I was younger I remember Granddad always had a pack of Spearmint Lifesavors--I used to not like them because the were so strong they left a burning sensation in my mouth.
11. His rings. Grandma D. gave him a big gold ring with his initials engraved on it-- D D O. He wore it on his left pinkie finger. He also wore his thin gold wedding band and never ever took it off in the 50+ years he was married.
12. His hands. He had strong hands and I was lucky enough to hold them for over an hour on Saturday, December 10th while we all gathered around his bed and said our tearful goodbyes. He squeezed them so tight but I didn't let go. I wanted him to know he wasn't alone in that hospital room. We told him he was surrounded by love, that everything was OK and that he'd done such a wonderful job with his life.
Our family Patriarch passed away quietly at 2:50 a.m. on Sunday, December 11th and I'll miss him forever. He passed away from various health complications but kept his sharp wit and independent will right up until the end. He was a fighter, but the exhaustion caused by weeks of sleepless nights convinced him otherwise. He was a great man and I am grateful he was a part of my life.
I'll always remember or try to always remember:
1. His big ears. I remember as a child being at their home on the lake and they always had a bag of Lays Original Potato Chips. I'd pull out the biggest chip I could find and he'd make a joke about that potato chip being as big as his ear and that, " I got his ear!". It made me laugh, and I still think of it often when I find a large Lays chip in my hand.
2. Tonic Water. They also always had tonic water for the traditional Vodka Tonic beverage everyone would enjoy...being only pint-sized I was only allowed the tonic water. But I loved it, and still do. Last week I was able to take home one of the cups that I have many tonic water memories in. It's a silly item to want but it's sentimental value is priceless.
3. Doctor Sicky. When I lived in my childhood home in Federal Way I recall Granddad picking me up to take me to see "Doctor Sicky" as I suppose I was feeling ill. I only saw that Doctor that one time and for years and years I thought that Doctor's name was actually "Doctor Sicky" until the light bulb went off that Granddad was joking.
4. Christmas. He always wore a red or green sweater and they always wrapped their gifts with plaid wrapping paper--always making sure the lines of the wrapping paper met up with one another properly.
5. The dining room at the lake house is where I have many, many memories. Birthdays, dinners, BBQ's....all centered around that room. We drank from Grandma's crystal stemware, always raising a glass to toast someone or something and if it was a birthday, you could count on cake and ice cream.
6. Gingerbread Men. Grandma used to always give us a gingerbread man cookie when we said goodbye. It was a special treat and I've only once tasted a cookie that was similar to the ones she gave us.
7. He always said, "on the thing", as a filler. He also said "take care, "bye-bye", "Hello Dear", and once called Katie Holmes a lush. He liked to keep up on the celebrity gossip.
8. The white Mercedes. I don't know where we went but I have a memory of Granddad and Grandma D. picking up my brother and I and taking us down Pacific Highway in their white Mercedes. I remember I liked the back seat cargo holder because it was like a stretchy net.
9. The Station Wagon. Granddad always drove a Station Wagon...until they traded in the Wagon and the Mercedes for a HUGE Cadillac with heated seats, a 12-CD changer; the works!
10. Spearmint Lifesavors. When I was younger I remember Granddad always had a pack of Spearmint Lifesavors--I used to not like them because the were so strong they left a burning sensation in my mouth.
11. His rings. Grandma D. gave him a big gold ring with his initials engraved on it-- D D O. He wore it on his left pinkie finger. He also wore his thin gold wedding band and never ever took it off in the 50+ years he was married.
12. His hands. He had strong hands and I was lucky enough to hold them for over an hour on Saturday, December 10th while we all gathered around his bed and said our tearful goodbyes. He squeezed them so tight but I didn't let go. I wanted him to know he wasn't alone in that hospital room. We told him he was surrounded by love, that everything was OK and that he'd done such a wonderful job with his life.
