A Blessed Life...

My grandfather passed away this week.  Luckily, I took my kids down to see him and my grandmother last weekend so we were able to see him during his last days; something I feel very blessed for.  Seeing him in that state, and seeing my grandmother with him, has left me with a few images that will forever be imprinted in my mind.  Although his consciousness was fleeting, in the brief moments we did have, you could tell how much it meant to him to see his family and his great grandchildren.  In one moment, his reached out and held my 4 month old daughter's foot and he smiled with joy.  Another time, he just stared into my son’s eyes, almost in awe, finally saying: “he looks like you”.  And after each time we leaned over to tell him “we love you”, we got a “love you” in return.  These were some of the last words my grandfather spoke.  Wow.

But one of the images that has impacted me the most was from the last time we went in to see him.  He was not really conscious at the time so we went over to see my grandmother.  Soon after, she got up, walked over to his room (they were in a rehabilitation center together), saw his state, and just leaned over to give him a kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss on the lips; even from across the room you could feel how much she loves him; my heart ached for her.

They celebrated their 70^th wedding anniversary this year.  Actually, both sets of my grandparents celebrated their 70^th wedding anniversary this year.  Amazing.  I told each of them that they are an inspiration.  Although I am so saddened to think of my grandmother’s love passing on, I am moved to my core by how much they stood by each other, loving and supporting each other as one unit.

As my husband says, “that is a blessed life”.  I am reminded how important it is to tell and show your loved ones how much they mean to you.  And I am reminded how important it is to believe in them and support them. 

I think of my husband and how much we love and support each other; I would say we do an amazing job of that.  And I hope that we can be as blessed as my grandparents, with at least 70 great years together.
 

So, my test for my next black belt is tonight; I will let you know how it goes.