Fishing with Grandpa
As a kid, my grandpa would always take me fishing. When I first started fishing with him, I was an impatient kid who constantly kept reeling in and recasting my line. Grandpa came over to me from across the dock and said, “Try to be a little more patient, grandson. Just put in your line, enjoy the moment, and wait for a tug. To catch that big fish everyone dreams about, you have to give it time. In fact, quite a few things in life just require time.” I listened to what he said and just went on fishing, but now eight years after his death, I actually think about what he said to me. The lessons he told me still linger in my heart and take me back to the day he died. In November of 2008, my grandfather passed away due to a heart attack. His death taught me to persevere through tough times, death is apart of life, and that I wished I had valued my grandpa more when he was alive.
The night of my grandpa’s death and the following days were one of the toughest times I’ve ever been through. My father received a call where he was told that his dad had suffered a heart attack. My father told our family, and we all instantaneously started sobbing. From that night until the funeral was a miserable period of time. My family moped around the house and cried throughout the day. Finally, the funeral came. It was beautiful but made me an emotional mess. Through the beginning of the visitation to the end of the burial, it was all I could do to not break down in tears. A few days after the funeral, I finally started feeling normal again, and the pain was starting to ease.
A few weeks after my grandfather’s death, I specifically remember asking my parents a series of questions in rapid fire. I asked them questions: “Why did grandpa have to die?”; “How did grandpa die?”; “Why did God choose him?”; and “Does everyone die?” My parents tried as best they could to explain those answers simply to their kid. They tried to explain how death is key part of life and death is experienced by everyone. They told me answers: “We do not get to choose when a loved one gets to die”; “Grandpa died of a heart attack”; “God thought it was his time to die and go to heaven”; and “Everyone does die at some point.” I remember not liking their answers. I did know that what they were saying was important and valuable. To this day I remember the lessons of death they taught me and the memories of my grandpa.
Even now, years later after my grandpa’s death, I still think about him. I catch myself all the time recalling some of the great memories that I had created with my grandfather. Activities like fishing on a sunny afternoon, eating McDonalds on a early Saturday morning, and riding four wheelers through the woods were all memories that we shared. I also wish that I would’ve been older at the time of his death. We would of had more time together, and I would of had a better understanding and reaction when he died. If I had been older, I also would have known how great of a man I had as a grandpa. Since I was pretty young when the death happened, I didn’t truly appreciate the time we had.
I put my line back in, enjoyed the breeze, and patiently waited for a fish to bite the hook causing a tug on my line. I waited and waited, all while I resisted the terrible urge to reel my line in and recast. After about 15 minutes I felt it. I finally felt the tug of a fish that had sunk its mouth on my hook. I had a rush of adrenaline pump through my body and reeled my line in as fast as I could spin the handle. At last my line came up and a big catfish was attached to the end! Engulfed in happiness, I started to take my fish off the hook. “You did it! You waited patiently and was rewarded. I told you that all it takes is a little time,” said grandpa. At my current age of 17, I now look back at many events I’ve gone through in my life so far that have required just a little bit of time. I learned many lessons from my grandpa, from our memories and from his death. My grandpa’s death educated me to push through adversity, that death is a necessary component of life, and that I wish I had appreciated what I had.
The night of my grandpa’s death and the following days were one of the toughest times I’ve ever been through. My father received a call where he was told that his dad had suffered a heart attack. My father told our family, and we all instantaneously started sobbing. From that night until the funeral was a miserable period of time. My family moped around the house and cried throughout the day. Finally, the funeral came. It was beautiful but made me an emotional mess. Through the beginning of the visitation to the end of the burial, it was all I could do to not break down in tears. A few days after the funeral, I finally started feeling normal again, and the pain was starting to ease.
A few weeks after my grandfather’s death, I specifically remember asking my parents a series of questions in rapid fire. I asked them questions: “Why did grandpa have to die?”; “How did grandpa die?”; “Why did God choose him?”; and “Does everyone die?” My parents tried as best they could to explain those answers simply to their kid. They tried to explain how death is key part of life and death is experienced by everyone. They told me answers: “We do not get to choose when a loved one gets to die”; “Grandpa died of a heart attack”; “God thought it was his time to die and go to heaven”; and “Everyone does die at some point.” I remember not liking their answers. I did know that what they were saying was important and valuable. To this day I remember the lessons of death they taught me and the memories of my grandpa.
Even now, years later after my grandpa’s death, I still think about him. I catch myself all the time recalling some of the great memories that I had created with my grandfather. Activities like fishing on a sunny afternoon, eating McDonalds on a early Saturday morning, and riding four wheelers through the woods were all memories that we shared. I also wish that I would’ve been older at the time of his death. We would of had more time together, and I would of had a better understanding and reaction when he died. If I had been older, I also would have known how great of a man I had as a grandpa. Since I was pretty young when the death happened, I didn’t truly appreciate the time we had.
I put my line back in, enjoyed the breeze, and patiently waited for a fish to bite the hook causing a tug on my line. I waited and waited, all while I resisted the terrible urge to reel my line in and recast. After about 15 minutes I felt it. I finally felt the tug of a fish that had sunk its mouth on my hook. I had a rush of adrenaline pump through my body and reeled my line in as fast as I could spin the handle. At last my line came up and a big catfish was attached to the end! Engulfed in happiness, I started to take my fish off the hook. “You did it! You waited patiently and was rewarded. I told you that all it takes is a little time,” said grandpa. At my current age of 17, I now look back at many events I’ve gone through in my life so far that have required just a little bit of time. I learned many lessons from my grandpa, from our memories and from his death. My grandpa’s death educated me to push through adversity, that death is a necessary component of life, and that I wish I had appreciated what I had.