When I was in grade 7 I moved in to my Grampa's house where my father was living. I feel that my life was greatly enriched by having the chance to live with my grampa; North American values usually leave everyone more than one generation removed living elsewhere. He gave me a lot of my perspective on life and he was a large influence during my early teens. Some of my ethics came from him, as do much of my manners.
When he passed away, I was very sad until I saw the body in the hospital... I remember thinking, "That's not him," and the sadness lifted. It's taken me years to realize that even back then I saw that he would live on forever in the ever expanding circle of people and events that he'd touched. He was truly a great man: he was the head civil architect of Edmonton for many years, he won the Alberta Achievement Award for community service, he was constantly involved with his church, he won both the Silver Wolf and the 50yr Service Pin from the Boy Scouts (two of their highest honours), and most importantly to me, he was my grandfather.
I will always cherish his memory and feel it proding me on to become more than I am.
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Posted on: August 19th, 2001 under lifelines.