Granted, we are sad that Pa is gone. Sweetie will miss calling him with questions and we'll miss listening to his stories and seeing his smile. Pa was, and still is, a very caring and funny man...the only thing that has changed is that it's "long distance" to talk to him and he can't call back! He has suffered for many many years with a variety of illnesses and has recently been suffering from "black lung"...a common affliction of coal miners.
Pa came from a long line of coal miners, so in his honor Daughter and Son-in-law #2 (who are so talented and creative it isn't funny!) created this arrangement for him. When miners go into the mine they move or flip their brass tag with their name on it to the "work" side, then return it when they're done with their shift (that way you know who is still in the mine!) The tags on the box represent Pa's family and his tag is turned...because he's working on the other side.
Many of the memories that were shared at Pa's funeral had to do with the stories he would tell. He loved to tell his grandkids made-up stories...stories about Rubber Lions and Grinnin' Gritchum Paws...a creature that could only be conquered by grinning at it. He told his kids and grandkids about his many adventures growing up in rough-and-tumble mining towns, and many of his tales had a moral lesson to them. "Green River Watermelons" taught us to leave our sins and troubles behind us and do what we should to return home to God.
We won't be receiving any kind of financial or temporal inheritance from Pa, but he left us a legacy that is far more priceless. We love ya Pa...and know you're looking down from heaven at your family...and grinnin'!
2 comments:
Love this post! thank you - the quote about perfect parts is this:
He wasn't a perfect man, but he did have perfect parts. :)
Love ya!
He was a good man and the day was lovely. He'll be missed.
Post a Comment