memories

today is the anniversary of grandpa arnold's death. i think about him often, but particularly on this day. maybe its because the date is so close to my birthday, but i feel connected to him, even in his death. i have lots of memories of him, some of my own & some from stories i've heard from grandma delia and mama. i have a tender place in my heart for him, even though i didn't know him for very long on this earth. i know that he loved me. i think he felt about me the way grandma delia does, even to this day. if i had a fan club, grandma would be #1 in it. she thinks i can do anything. she believes i'm the best at everything i do, from scrapbooking, to mothering, to piano playing. i think that's sort of how grandpa thought about me when i was a little girl. he sure was proud of everything i could do. one of my "snapshot memories" of him is of him walking around the corner of the porch at grandma's & i was running along beside him. i remember him lifting me up and putting me on his shoulders and me just giggling. often i think about him, wondering what he thinks of me now, with my own sweet little family. i bet he would love it. i had a neat experience the week before merry grace's blessing. one morning in the shower, i was thinking how neat it was that so many people would be there for the blessing & how glad i was to have both daddy & ethan be able to participate. it just hit me that i wished both my grandpa's could be there, too. immediately as i thought that, i had this one clear image of grandpa arnold & grandpa jarrell, dressed in suits, walking into our cultural hall. all it was was that one image. but it was a very special experience for me. even now, as i type it, my eyes are filled with tears. i'm so grateful to be part of an eternal family. if there's anything grandpa arnold would have wanted, it would be for all of us to be able to be together forever.