Pop-pop passed away quietly this morning while Tom and Nancy were at the hospital. Bob unfortuntely didn't make it to Erie in time. But at least we were all able to spend time with Pop-pop at the beach and the wedding 2 weeks ago. And I gotta tell you, when it's my time to go, that's how I want it to be. Spending a week with my family and friends, watching my kids and grandkids have a great time and knowing that I've raised a good strong family. I think knowing that you've made a difference in so many people's lives, have been a great father and an excellent grandfather, makes it a little bit easier to say goodbye. That said, it's always hard to lose a family member, especially one that you've had a close bond with (in my case through all the times we'd gone hiking together). Even knowing that he probably didn't have much time left, it's still hard to think of a world without him in it. Watching him deteriorate has been very difficult for all of us, especially in the last year. To see how quickly Leukemia and heart failure could reduce a man that we've always known to be in superb physical shape and who always seemed to me to be damn near invincible is a terrifying thing. As Most Precious Blood says, it's not easy watching your architects fall. Pop-pop provided us a model for how to live our lives and he will be sorely missed. The image indellibly inked into my brain right now is of me and Pop-pop and Mr. Gregory standing atop the frozen Chilkoot Pass about to cross into Canada, following in the footsteps of the gold seekers a century before. Week-old stubble, cocked knit hat, rain gear, mittens and all, we felt on top of the world, and that is how I will always remember him.
Carry the lantern high. Love is stronger than death.
Carry the lantern high. Love is stronger than death.
