Today we attended the unofficial memorial for Grandpa. The senior center where he spent the last 10 years put together a memorial for him. The place was packed and they added extra chairs in the back for those that were not eating there.
The service was very simple and informal. There were people from the Airlines that had worked for him for 30 years. There were neighbors that came to say how wonderful he always was to them. He was a giving man who would do anything for anyone.
My girls were all in attendance and they did fabulous. These children are just amazing human beings. They were respectful and quiet. They did not interrupt and they did not argue when it was time to go. They mourned with the rest of the room over the loss of such a fabulous person.
There was a woman at the center who had a child that was as old as Grandpa. He had called her mom for years, and she spoke to what a wonderful man he was. She had lost her daughter years before, and he gladly became the surrogate.
He met my Grandma at a dance hall years before, and a member of the band was there to say that he came up for the last ten years and spoke of his wife. He loved her with all his heart and I truly believe they are together again.
I allowed myself to cry for the first time today, where I did not try to stop it. I mourned the loss for the first time since he left. Today was healing for many people.
In a few months we will take their ashes and fulfill their wishes. We will celebrate their lives as a family and we will enjoy the things they taught me to enjoy. Life goes on, but their memory will not fade.
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