Today I am missing my Grandpa Bob.  He was the coolest.  He was curious, kind, generous, goofy, could not spell, loved his family well, and was very impatient.  He loved butterscotch candies and cheeseburgers.  And I often found him snacking on Saltines with mayonnaise spread on top.  

Today Benjamin was asking about him.  You see we were talking about my grandma Ginny and how we missed her – it has been a year since she passed away.  And Ben was saying how he missed going to visit her with my mom. I am so thankful he got to have a relationship with my grandma.  But he never knew Grandpa Bob, because Grandpa passed away just weeks before Ben was born.  And Ben started to cry, I mean really sob because he didn’t get to know Grandpa Bob.  Which makes me cry.  Because those two would have loved each other.  There is so much in Ben that reminds me of my Grandpa.

Ben loves hanging out with people – always up for a get together or dinner party – just like Grandpa.  Ben is curious and wants to learn about big animals, or things in space or how exactly some machine works.  Grandpa was so curious.  I think the internet was the best thing that ever happened to Grandpa in his retirement – because he could just learn all day long.  He was a lifelong learner and the only person I know besides my professor who read my entire 150 page thesis when I was in Grad School.  After he read my paper he had a stack of questions for me.  He was so proud of me.  

My Grandpa was also so generous – he never made a lot of money, but he lived simply and saved wisely.  Every time I visited him in college (which I did often since we were both in California at the time) he would fill my car up with gas, wash my car, and stick a $20 bill in the viser for later.  And every trip he would make sure to take me to McDonald’s for breakfast to check in on my life.  So generous with his time as well.

So Ben I wish you could have met Grandpa Bob.  Your life is more interesting because of his legacy.  Thankfully my mom has a lot of Grandpa Bob in her, and I think so do I.  So hopefully Ben will get to know him through us.  Miss you Grandpa!