root beer and ice cream

There is nothing my grandfather loved more than a good ole' fashioned hamburger paired with a large root beer and an ice cream cone. And that is exactly what he would have on his last day with us.

Knowing that my mom would be out of town the day of papas 93rd birthday, she and her sister decided to take him for an early celebration. You must know that we knew papa was on his last leg. His brain still sharp but his body was desperately needing to be free! Only getting out of bed for meals, it was a miracle in itself that they were able to get him to the car. But they did, so off they went to Dans Hamburgers. As he sat in the car they brought him his burger, curly fries and a root beer. And by golly it was so good he asked for a refill. They laughed and exchanged stories as they always did and when they were finished he still had the energy for an ice cream cone, so they went to his favorite spot, Dairy Queen! He savored every bite saying "I swear, DQ has the best soft serve in town." 

After dropping my aunt off, my mom and papa headed back so he could take a nap. She wheeled him into his room and leaned over to give him a kiss. Knowing she was headed to Israel on Sunday, he looked up at her with tears in his eyes and said "Debbie, you might just walk exactly where Jesus walked." She smiled big, gave him a hug and told him she loved him. A few hours later I got the call that he had passed in his sleep.

My brother, sister and I stayed up texting pictures and videos back and forth to each other. Each one bringing back memories of the most kind hearted man we ever knew. The man who needlepoint each of our Christmas stockings by hand, the man who told me he "always knew I had a screw loose" when one of the screws in my leg was coming unwound. The precious man that cried every time he prayed and every time he had to say goodbye. I can still hear his voice every time he left me a message "this is papa, you don't need to call me back" and always finished with "tell ever'body hi, love you." 

My parents are currently walking the steps of Jesus' ministry while our sweet Papa is walking beside Him in heaven. I bet they just finished a burger and are headed for an ice cream cone now! We love you Papa. Thank you for so many years and so many stories.