In January my Grandmother LaVelle died. This morning my Grandfather John (her husband) died.

He was an amazing man. Was an Army Engineer, lost an eye, and came back to talk about it. Came back to marry a woman who had just gotten divorced on her own terms (unheard of in those days) who had 2 children. Together they had my mother. They spent their lives learning the real estate trade, collecting rocks, and raising a wonderful family. They still lived in the house where they met over 55 years later. I spent many christmas eves in that house as a child. There are still pencil marks on the kitchen doorway of how tall I was at age 8, 11, and 15.

That spinach never did put hair on my chest John. I'm going to have to arm-wrestle my own grandkids just so I can let them win too.

It's hard to find the words through all the tears.

Thank you for the punching bag, I did use it.

He was the last one of his generation left in my family. My father's parents have been dead for a while now (father since 1980, mother since 1993 I think). My mother isn't doing so well right now, having just lost both her parents in the span of 3 months.

I'm not doing so well having just lost the only grandparents I will ever have.

I will miss you John.
I love you more than I ever had words for.
I miss you already.

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Live life while you have it. Not for your sake but for the people who care about you.