Sunday, March 16, 2008
A Tribute to Grandpa John
Last Saturday, March 8, my Grandpa John entered into utmost bliss. He passed on from this world and is now in the presence of Christ, free from pain and grief. Grandpa lived a full life. He was filled to the brim with love and acceptance for others. Strangers might have found him a bit gruff but those of us who knew him, knew he was just one big teddy bear. He loved to tease the living daylights out of me and anyone around him. That was one of his love languages. One of my fondest memories of him was his talent of wiggling his ears. As I stood in front of his casket looking down and thanking God for my Grandpa’s life, I wished I could see him wiggle his ears one more time. I guess that will have to wait until we meet again in heaven. I imagine he’s driving the best of the best tractors and being as ornery as ever right now.The hardest part of the funeral was seeing Grandma Dorothy grieve. The most precious moment was when my cousin, Debbie, sang Amazing Grace at the end of the funeral and Grandma sang the entire song with her. The funeral was beautiful and a true celebration of Grandpa John’s life.
Another one of my cousin’s, Tim, wrote another verse to How Great Thou Art in honor of Grandpa. Tim's wife, Arin, sang it while he accompanied her with the guitar. Here it is.
Between green fields, tall with the summer growing,
John gave his time to land and family.
He loved you Lord, in reaping and in sowing
His life declared, my God how great though art...
His life did indeed declare how great our God is. I’m so thankful for the heritage he left and the memories I have of him.
This picture of me and Gramps was taken in 2004 during my college graduation celebration with my family. It was one of the last times all four of my grandparents were together.
I’m celebrating my Grandpa’s home going because 2 Timothy 4:7 rings true in his testimony, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Now that is something to celebrate.
Jamie at 9:19 PM
1 Comments
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at 6:57 AM
Carole said... Hi Jamie!
I'm sorry to hear about your grandfather. I remember meeting him on that roadtrip we took (in 2003?) and he seemed sweet.
I haven't been able to read any blogs while I'm in China, but I have a few days vacation in Thailand and I'm catching up. It's great to get a little update through your blog. I wish we could sit down and catch up over coffee, but I suppose computer screens are the next best thing!
