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So my Pepa is my hero. I've always had a soft spot for that man, and he has the same for me. I have SO many great memories from my childhood with him, and he's giving the same to my children. Unfortunately, in the last year he hasn't been doing so well. And I am not going to go into details about b/c call me crazy...I'm a little superstitious about things. I'm afraid that if I talk about it too much, the worst will happen. And I just can't deal with that right now. So instead, I'm going to blog some of my favorite things about him and some memories. And I also posted some pics of my grandparents from the wedding (pictures by Erica Foley).
1. First of all, we always had a special thing b/c our birthdays are so close together. And then Brooklyn came along, and all 3 of us get to have a family birthday party every year. My b-day is June 9th, Pepa's is the 12th, and Brooklyn's is the 14th. But as a kid, my grandmother would always try to have separate ones for us, but I would not have it. It was SO cool to get to share that with my grandfather, and he loved it too. Plus we liked the same kind of cake ;)
2. He can be kinda mean...to everyone but me. He won't take crap off of anyone, and can cut you down before you can blink. But never with me. He was always gentle and kind, and I LOVE the way he smells! Old Spice does not smell good on anyone other than him, I swear. But I would love to hug him just to breathe in that smell.
3. My grandparents owned their own business for over 20 years. We called it "The Shop". And man, I thought it was the coolest place ever! Whenever I was out of school sick, I would get to go to the shop with my grandmother. She was in charge of all the books and business side, and he was the repairman/boss. He would go out on calls and stuff, and work in the shop fixing microwaves, refrigerators, air conditioning units...pretty much any kind of appliance. Sometimes I would get to help take calls or load up microwaves when people would come to pick them up. I thought I was oh so cool ;) Anyway, so I would be sitting there on those days, helping Grandma do whatever or watching the little portable TV, just waiting for Pepa to come back from a call. I would watch the time b/c sometimes he would come in and ask me to go to lunch with him. He would clear out the passenger side of his truck so that I could fit in there. And his truck smelled great too. I don't know why b/c it was really nothing special, but it just smelled like Pepa. Actually, it still does. Anyway, he would eat at a place called Linda's (which is now known as Stones River Grill) b/c "They always cook my food the right way" he says. But we would sit there and eat and do the crossword puzzle from the newspaper. I loved those days.
4. He would do anything for me. I was in the 3rd grade and we were studying hummingbirds. Well, my Pepa is a hummingbird fanatic! So he scheduled me in one day and came to my class to teach us about them. He was in his work uniform and everything! And we also had Grandparents' Day every December at my school. All the classes would sing, and if you had a grandparent that came, you got to go eat some special refreshments after the program. He, again, would always be there with my grandmother and my Granny.
5. He has had an amazing life. I used to love to hear stories from his days in the Air Force. He even got to fly President Eisenhower once. He also had great stories from his childhood as well. But these days he says all of that is a little fuzzy for him.
I could go on and on about him, but unfortunately I don't have time for that. I've got to get the kids in the bathtub and get them ready for bed. Thanks for reading my memories :)
1. First of all, we always had a special thing b/c our birthdays are so close together. And then Brooklyn came along, and all 3 of us get to have a family birthday party every year. My b-day is June 9th, Pepa's is the 12th, and Brooklyn's is the 14th. But as a kid, my grandmother would always try to have separate ones for us, but I would not have it. It was SO cool to get to share that with my grandfather, and he loved it too. Plus we liked the same kind of cake ;)
2. He can be kinda mean...to everyone but me. He won't take crap off of anyone, and can cut you down before you can blink. But never with me. He was always gentle and kind, and I LOVE the way he smells! Old Spice does not smell good on anyone other than him, I swear. But I would love to hug him just to breathe in that smell.
3. My grandparents owned their own business for over 20 years. We called it "The Shop". And man, I thought it was the coolest place ever! Whenever I was out of school sick, I would get to go to the shop with my grandmother. She was in charge of all the books and business side, and he was the repairman/boss. He would go out on calls and stuff, and work in the shop fixing microwaves, refrigerators, air conditioning units...pretty much any kind of appliance. Sometimes I would get to help take calls or load up microwaves when people would come to pick them up. I thought I was oh so cool ;) Anyway, so I would be sitting there on those days, helping Grandma do whatever or watching the little portable TV, just waiting for Pepa to come back from a call. I would watch the time b/c sometimes he would come in and ask me to go to lunch with him. He would clear out the passenger side of his truck so that I could fit in there. And his truck smelled great too. I don't know why b/c it was really nothing special, but it just smelled like Pepa. Actually, it still does. Anyway, he would eat at a place called Linda's (which is now known as Stones River Grill) b/c "They always cook my food the right way" he says. But we would sit there and eat and do the crossword puzzle from the newspaper. I loved those days.
4. He would do anything for me. I was in the 3rd grade and we were studying hummingbirds. Well, my Pepa is a hummingbird fanatic! So he scheduled me in one day and came to my class to teach us about them. He was in his work uniform and everything! And we also had Grandparents' Day every December at my school. All the classes would sing, and if you had a grandparent that came, you got to go eat some special refreshments after the program. He, again, would always be there with my grandmother and my Granny.
5. He has had an amazing life. I used to love to hear stories from his days in the Air Force. He even got to fly President Eisenhower once. He also had great stories from his childhood as well. But these days he says all of that is a little fuzzy for him.
I could go on and on about him, but unfortunately I don't have time for that. I've got to get the kids in the bathtub and get them ready for bed. Thanks for reading my memories :)
6 comments:
Those are awesome memories Jen, you should get a journal and write them down for your kids. My Mom did that about her Dad, he passed away when I was 4 and I don't remember him too much, but I can read her stories and I feel like I knew him more than I did. I hope the best for your pepa. Remember, all is well.
I seriously just teared up. Your Pepa reminds me a lot of my Pepaw (aka Pop..ha). When we got all cool teenagers, we shortened it;) My Pop was also in the Air Force and has the same distinct smell with the very same headstrong-ness towards others...but not me. I'm praying that he stays well:) Love ya!
Big hugs Jen :) Hang in there and I'm sending tons of prayers your way for him
You're such an amazing writer Jen! Those are such special memories and he is in my prayers!
Aww!! Those sound fabulous! I love reminiscing about things like that especially with my grandparents in mind. ANd my grandfather had that same old spice smell and I Loved it too! I hope he is doing better!
Hi, very interesting post, greetings from Greece!
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