I lost a legend this week. My Grandma had a sudden stroke and was gone the next morning. Now, lucky for me, I was able to spend the last 29 years knowing my Grandma and Grandpa (who also passed earlier this year). I guess you can never really be ready to lose someone until they are gone, and then you grieve them and never forget how they impacted your life.
There was quite a difference in the way they went, Grandpa had been talking about it for years. Every time I would see him and tell him goodbye, his response was something along the lines of, "I won't be around 'til then." He's had one foot out the door of life for at least five years. But, WOW, did it hurt when it really happened.
And just when she started to really break out and start living without him, Grandma went too. Grandma was different. She had chosen to live life, to the fullest, every day. She was busy, never bored. She engaged her mind and body all the time, every day. She always had a crossword and a new painting that she was working on and was always up for a game of Scrabble. There was always fresh biscotti in the cookie jar and ice cream in the freezer, just in case the kids came by. Never missed a Birthday or a holiday. She was healthy, strong and young at mind and heart. And then, gone. Just that quick.
So, to cope, I look at past pictures. I cherish the treasures that I got to bring home and I continue to tell myself how fortunate I was to have them for the first 29 years of my life, and how fortunate Sophia was to have them for 6 of hers. Not everyone gets a chance to share a song with their Grandpa-Great and a sundae with their Grandma-Great and I just keep telling her that.
I just hope they know the legacy they left behind - They were loved so much, by so many.
You will be missed, Grams and Gramps.
