Just Vent | Just Venting

Words can not express my heartfelt reverence and appreciation I feel for getting the chance to learn from you. You didn't teach me how to read and write. You didn't teach me algebra. No. You taught me the finer things in life that I will not soon forget. You taught me to respect others and how important it is to listen to those who willingly gave advice. I learned from you how important family is and how much of a blessing it is to have one of your own. More importantly, I learned that love is essential in ones life.

I learned much of this not by watching you, but by listening to your stories, and there is one story that has been etched into my mind since the day you shared it with me. One day I approached you and complained about how upset I was with my girlfriend and left her house without saying goodbye or an "I love you" because of an argument we had that day. You sat me down and said, "Son, you should never leave anyone upset like that, especially without saying goodbye." And before I asked "why not," he calmly stood up and walked over to a wooden lock box which I've never seen you open in the 18 years I've been alive. He sat down and without saying a word, slowly pulled out an old black and white photo of a young girl from the late 40's, just after WWII. He said, "This is Edith. We dated after we got back from serving in the army in WW2. We actually bumped into each other while disembarking from a troop ship in Boston harbor. I asked her where she was from; we ended up being from the same town and knew some of the same people so we decided to go home together. We became good friends and by 1948, we ended up dating. About three years passed and I asked her to marry me. By the summer of 1951, we were married. One year later, we just got into a huge argument about something so trivial, don't know why but we just were pissed off at one another beyond all reason. So without saying goodbye, I went for a walk and she grabbed our keys and drove somewhere, probably to her mothers. I came home a half hour later and noticed Edith hadn't returned home. Figured she was still upset so I didn't think much of it. Three hours later I got a phone call from the authorities. Edith was dead. She died in an automobile accident. She was speeding, hit a patch of ice, slid and hit a tree. She passed away by the time the ambulance got there."

He started crying a bit and said, "If only one of us stopped one another. If only I had apologized we would probably still be together." He burst into tears and could hardly speak, "I didn't say goodbye. I didn't tell her I loved her that day."

With that, he just stared at her picture, holding it to his chest. What seemed to be an eternity to me. He later slowly turns to me and says, "Call your girlfriend up and apologize. Never leave each other angry. Life is too short and delicate for foolish mistakes. Love and life is god's gift to man. Don't ever take it for granted. They both go hand in hand."

I followed his advice and to this day, I'll never forget it. Grandpa, despite everything you went through, despite what you have lost, you still became a virtuous man, a selfless man who only wanted to give to the world. You were always surrounded by family because you were always there for everyone. Everyone looks up to you. Everyone loves you. I love you.

Though you have passed on, your memory will live forever in the hearts of all those you have touched. Rest in peace grandpa, your soul has earned it.