It's been a year....

     A year can come and go,
     But our feelings will always show
     That you were more than just a name
     More than a part of this game

      Fishing tales and tying hooks
      You never had to open a book
       To teach me what was important in life
      How to live and be a good wife

     Every October will be hard
     In the woods alone I will be on guard
     I will use the lessons you taught
     Because you always thought
      The best of me was real
     And I just never figured out that deal

     Thank you for always being the grandparent
     Who never knew you were really a second parent.
     Who helped raise a crazy child
      While she wanted to run free and wild
      Thank you for the bear bones
      For the silly joking tones

   The good joyful years
wipping away all the tears
Every time I wound up sick
you were the person I wanted to come quick
House shoes and camouflage jacket
that's okay we'll just tack it

Tomboy is what you always encouraged
Prissy college girl was always discouraged
teaching me how to drive a stick
laughing because we pull that trick

picking polk salad and eating it
watching for snakes and avoiding getting bit
fish fries on the back porch
no one could hold a torch
to the legacy you left behind
to the stories that will never unwind
to love that will forever bind





           I loved my grandfather and he taught me more about life than any book could. He once gave me bear bones for Christmas, not because it was the only gift he had to offer, but because it was the only bear in his life time that he got a shot at.  I buried them along with him. To me they were a token of keeping it real and giving all you have. He spent every hunting season freezing in the woods awaiting his prey, and he never gave up. It was that determination that has helped me become the person I am today. The month of November will always be his month. It was his birthday month and his favorite holiday.  I just wanted to take time say thank you to all grandparents who make their children's lives special!
         We bought our turkey today and I was actually surprised that our cashier said, "happy holidays." It was a nice gesture. I only wish my grandpa could have been here. He would have told her, "hold your horses, it's not even Thanksgiving yet!" I wish I could just skip over the holidays...