This is for a very Dear Friend whose Grandparents mean everything to them.
No..not mouthwash.

Gramps was born 1909. First job was ice delivery via horse n buggy 1913. We emailed 2012 before he passed away.

What do you want the scope of your life to be?

How do you feel about the torch you have been passed?

I ASPIRE to be HALF the person of my near ancestors! How do we step up to "that"?

I adored my grandfathers, all 3 of them.
Never enough time spent with them.

They were wise men, with all the flaws we all have.

I think (hope) I got some of that and use it.

HaHAH Fab! I had 3 sets too!

So lucky are we!

I "ASPIRE" to make a difference in the lives of those around or at the very least give them pause to think, but not be remembered for any of it and when I die there will be little to no proof that I ever existed.

I loved my grandfather so very very much. It's difficult for me right now to try to describe that man in words. He was my warrior, my shining star, my everything.

These such strong and poignant individuals!! +

Love

My granddads both passed before I was born.
But my grandmothers were a big influence.
Paternal grandma left everyone and everything she knew, when
she got on a ship at the age of 16, and sailed from Sweden to Canada.
My maternal grandma was burned badly as a child. Some of her family referred to her
as "the cripple". She married and raised a family under pretty bleak conditions during
the depression and drought of the 1930's. She buried 4 children. She lost a set of twins during
childbirth. She put them in a shoe box, and buried them, because they couldn't afford an undertaker or funeral.
I can only strive to to have half the strength of those two ladies.

Amen brother.
I did not know until I was grown up that I was not a blood
relative of the one..and yet he is the one I loved the most.

He was so patient and kind.
I said to him one time "Grandpa, Grandma is such a biotch,
how do you live with her?"

"Ah, he'd say "when you love.." and we would both turn and
look at her in the kitchen. We would both smile :-)

You are lucky Pancho, all my Grandmothers were harridans.
Well, except the ex hooker one, she was cool.

...and Grandma?

I am blessed to still have a grandmother still alive. My mums parents both died over the last three years.
No many can say they have or had grandparents in their forties or fifties.

That my bro are strong, courageous and intelligent women who have guts.
Would have been blessed to know them.

My Gramps used to hold my face in his hands and give me a little pat on the cheek. Then he would pat the other side, "because we don't want something to be uneven".

My Gramps taught me to always keep things even.

Only had the pleasure of meeting one of my grand dads when I was 12 we lived in Nebraska for a year... Good times showed my brother and I how to play pitch.. We played for hours with him... He passed away that year that we were there and we moved back to Texas once again..

His whole backyard was a garden and he was well known for his Strawberries in Kearney Nebraska.... still have the clipping where he was in the newspaper for the biggest Strawberries..

He would let my brother and I go out in the garden anytime we wanted to and pick right from the garden and eat.. First time I ever ate rhubarb....

Grandpa use to make strawberry wine as well keep it in the cellar...He brought a bottle up one night while we were playing cards and let us try it.... Was only a couple sips but we thought we were it...

For me it was mainly my grandmother on my mothers side for my other grandmother had passed before I was born...

Now my Granny she helped raise us due to my mom passed when I was 15 months old....

If I can be half the granny she was I figured I did something right.... So yea I took the name of Granny with my grand kids.... While all the others did not want it made them feel old they said..hahaha Makes me feel proud

And Grandma Natalie died a few months ago.

That is so sweet, makes me kinda weepy.

One of my Grandfathers was not allowed to drive any more
for being nearly blind and old.

So he talks me into driving his Oldsmobile with him giving directions..

Had to stack stuff to see over the dash (did I mention I
was 13 or so?) and we are wobbling down the street to the
store, of course, had not parked before BAM into the guardrail..
Grandpa dashed in to get what he needed, came
back out and we dis-interred with the railing, somehow
backed up, and somehow made it home.

Wow what a row that night when I could not stop bragging
about my Formula 1 experience.

Grandpa just sat there and beamed..and turned off his
hearing aids.

Edited for off-topic.

soufie
Site Moderator

All the plodding of everyone's ancestors got us to the place where we can take more time for ourselves and work on our own personal development and growth.
I am doing that, and I pass that on to my children so they can take it a few steps further yet again.
I don't aspire to be like my ancestors or grandparents, life is about progression, not moving backwards or standing still. I just take what they have given me and build on that. And dump what doesn't suit me as a person.

Ancestors can also be the reason for less pleasant (family) patterns. I've been working on changing a few, and done healing on a couple of them a few times.

On Samhain (Halloween) I will honour my ancestors, esp my beloved dad who passed away 21st of March.