Grandma Bun

It was some time after 6 pm, and I was at the mall, buying ink refills for my pen, and then stopping by the T-Mobile store to upgrade my phone. I had just finished picking out my new phone, when my mother called. I grabbed my soon to be old cell phone and answered. She asked were I was (I assume she could hear the noise in the background). I told her I was shopping. I could tell by the tone in her voice, something was terribly wrong.

“I was hoping to catch you at home. I have some bad news.”

The end of a relationship with a grandparent is something that no one can ever be truly ready for. A grandparent is someone who has been in your life forever. Someone who is always in your corner. Someone who is always rooting for you. Someone who’s love is always completely unconditional. It is a relationship that is different from that you may have with your parents. Yes, your parents are all of the aforementioned things to you, but with a grandparent, it is different. They don’t play the same role in your life as a parent would. They are somehow able to transcend that relationship, while still providing a crucial role in your development. They are only the positive. They are only the best of things. They are like you, in many ways. You are on a journey of new discovery, and so are they. In both cases, those journeys are mired with obstacles, and with that comes the thrill of victory and the disappointment brought about by the set backs. Our parents go through the same type of things, but it’s different. They are your parents, and you see them differently. Your parents have always been the guiding force in forming the person that you are. Your grandparents have already been down that road, and now they are exploring new parts of life, just like you.

Grandparents share stories about how it was when they were your age, but unlike your parents, it’s not a lesson to be learned, but rather a sharing of differences and similarities. Grandparents have a certain wisdom that comes with time, as do your parents, but it’s different. These people are the ones who brought your parents into the world, and that brings with it a certain respect and sense of awe.

When you’re a child, grandparents seem impossibly old, and yet still full of life. They have so much history to share and so much knowledge to impart. Let’s not forget how they spoil you at every possible opportunity. As children, we all loved that. Trips to grandma and grandpa’s house were always cause for excitement. As we got older, it might sometimes have seemed an inconvenience, but one that we silently put up with (and many times, one we secretly looked forward to). As we become adults, we are finally able to grasp how much they truly have to offer.

While our parents have been there to guide and teach us, our grandparents are there to enrich us. The role they play in our lives is irreplaceable by any other person that we know.

In the end, we love them without question or reservation, and their loss is always deeply felt, and emotionally devastating.

I am very sad to say that my grandmother died today. I will truly miss and always love her.