... sometimes saying goodbye. But knowing it isn't forever.
This Friday Samuel & I will be traveling up to Michigan, to join his family in saying our fondest farewells to Grandpa Waldron at his memorial and burial. Grandpa passed away on Sept 29th, just about 12 hours after we had left his daughter's house, after saying our goodbyes in person. I don't think there are words to describe how important that trip was, and how grateful we are that we were able to make it.
It is difficult to explain just how important and amazing Grandpa was, but I'm going to attempt to tell you, because I need to...
The first time I met Grandpa, he made me feel like I was a part of the family. He was my Grandpa too. He was a very talented carpenter, which is amusing as one of my own grandpas is as well. Grandpa Waldron made 18 dulcimers in his life. I'm very blessed to say that Sam owns one, and is learning to play it. Here is Grandpa with his grandson Levi, and his son Bob, playing at our wedding reception in MI.
And this is my grandpa, on the left, talking with Sam's grandpa. Even though these were snapped with just a little pocket camera, I am so grateful we have these memories.
In addition to being a creative person, he truly encouraged creativity in others. He loved seeing our photos, and he never judged me when he went through the entire roll of film I had taken of one particular pregnant rhino we met at a zoo on our honeymoon. He even invested in our business when we started it up, and he was always eager to see what new things we were photographing.
Grandpa was a Sea Bee in the Navy, on the Pacific Islands, and I can't remember him not wearing this hat after it was given to him! This remains one of my two favorite photos of him & Sam!
A couple springs ago we took him to see the butterflies in "bloom" at the Frederick Mejier Gardens, in Grand Rapids.
He was so fascinated by them!
Here is a snap of him & Sam waiting patiently on me...
And here is what some of what they were waiting patiently for:
I hope I didn't disappoint!
When the time came for assisted living, Grandpa was very blessed to be able to move in with his daughter. We visited him a couple times, and during one visit Sam and Grandpa watched old home movies together.
We were able to journey with him to kidney dialysis the following morning, and it was amazing to see the love his nurses had for him. I'm including these photos because I love the shot of the Louis L'Amour book in his lap. Sam definitely gets his love of westerns from Grandpa!
The following is my personal favorite. Grandpa visiting us at the lake cabins while we were on vacation last year. He and Sam got to spend some quiet moments together.
I don't think there was a person he met that he didn't touch in some way. And he will truly be missed. The upside is we know we will see him again. And for that, we are rejoicing through our tears. ~Naomi
