One true blessing that God has given me is the privilege of knowing two great men. Both men were true men of faith, farmers, served their country proudly, loved their wives of 50+ years with all their hearts, and were the heart and soul of their families. More importantly, they were both grandfathers. One has been gone from this earth for 14 years, the other just recently went to be with his Father this past week. While the earth has lost two wonderful men, heaven has gained two beautiful angels. One of these great men, was my own grandfather, Ray Purvis. The other, my cousins' grandfather, Royce Ward. This past week as we said goodbye to Paw Paw, as he was known to his grandchildren, my heart went out to my cousins who grieved his loss. It is a very hard and painful thing to say goodbye to someone who has been such an important part of your life. And it was hard on me watching them go through this, because those feelings are still raw within me, 14 years later after my grandfather's death. It is hard watching people that you love have to go through something so hard, and I wish I could bear every tear, every heartache for them if I could because I love them all so much. But I also have to celebrate the fact that we all had such wonderful, loving men to look up to and to love us all. And that is worth all the gold on this earth. So while we may be saddened, we have the knowledge that our grandfathers are with their maker in glory, praising God's name in their perfect bodies, and watching over us, like they did here on earth. So this is my little way of paying tribute to these two people that we have loved so dearly.
For many, many years their were four of us. My brother Brad, my cousins Heath and Stacey, and me. We are related through our mothers, which are sisters. And we are all stair steps. First Brad, then Heath, then me, and poor little Stacey bringing up the rear. (for some reason, she hardly ever made it into any pictures when we were little. We are still unsure where she was. Of course this is an inside joke) Our maternal grandfather died before any of us were born, so we never had the privilege of knowing him. So our paternal grandfathers had to do double duty to make up for his absence, and they more than exceeded that challenge. We spent most summers together, either at their home in Walnut Hill, our home in Blountstown, or at their grandfather's farm in Dutch Bend, AL. So needless to say, their family is like my family and visa versa. We are all close and those bonds are something that I deeply cherish. We all lean on each other. We laugh together and cry together and I wouldn't have it any other way. I say all of this because many of my memories of their grandfather have to do with the summers that I spent either in Dutch Bend or at their home in Walnut Hill. I always loved going to see Paw Paw and Grandmommy. They always made me feel like I was a true Ward, just another grandchild. When we would stay in Dutch Bend, Stacey and I would usually sneak off to her grandparents trailer, because we knew that they would give us popsicles and other treats when our parents would not. Plus they had the pool! But what I loved even more was watching Stacey climb up in her grandfathers lap after he had come in from the field. I'm sure he was tired but he always had time for Stacey to come and tell him about her day. Usually it consisted of telling him what a horror Heath was and probably that I was bossing her around. He was a great man, and I know that his legacy will live on because I see so much of him in my Uncle Brett, and in Heath and Stacey. They all have a true strength and from having observed their grandfather for almost 30 years, I know exactly where it comes from and it is from him. I am so very thankful that Heath and Stacey had such an example to look up to and to learn from. Not only did they learn many life lessons from him, but they got to see what true love really looks like. Not just the love that he had for them, but the love he had for his wife. My prayer is that Joseph and I can have one ounce of what Royce and Marilyn had. If we can achieve that then we can consider ourselves blessed. If I can be half the grandparent that he was I will be blessed. I could always see the love pour out of him onto Heath and Stacey. They were the apple of his eye and I had the honor of seeing that proud look each time he looked at them, whether they saw it or not. And anyone that has ever met my Uncle Brett would know that it took someone truly amazing to raise such a man as he is. So this is my little thank you to Paw Paw for being a loving grandfather and father to the people that I love the most. You did fight the good fight, and and you should be so proud at what you accomplished. Worldly things aside, you raised a beautiful family and were a true testament to Christ.
Memories of Paw Paw also brought back memories of my own grandfather this week. My Papa Ray was the light of my life. The Lord truly blessed me with a grandfather that was patient and loving. I know I was his favorite and nobody could convince me otherwise. There is just a special bond between a grandfather and a granddaughter. I will cherish the short 14 years that I got to spend with him. I just like to think that he was so special that the Lord couldn't stand not to have him with him for another day. And truthfully, I couldn't blame Him! Every summer, I would go stay with my grandparents for a week or two. Papa would always take time to ride bicycles with me up and down that dirt road for as long as I wanted. If I couldn't find him in the house, all I had to do was walk outside the barn and find him tinkering on something out there. A trait that he passed down to my father, is to never throw anything away. Any piece of scrap metal was thrown in a heap in the hope that one day it could be used to fix something else. My favorite times were to get in his lap in his recliner and pull out the globe. He would show me all the countries that he had visited during his time during WWII and tell me all kinds of stories. To this day, I have a globe in my house, not because it is decorative, but because it reminds me of him and all those stories that we would talk about. I also have great memories of my grandparents in Blountstown. They had a trailer on the family farm that they would stay in for several weeks at a time. And when they were in town me and Brad would stay with them. Every morning we would have to get up and they would take us home so mom could take us to school. He would always let me or Brad drive on the dirt road to the highway. I always thought that was the coolest thing! One thing I really miss is at night when I stay at my grandmothers. I would always sleep with Mama Bernice and Brad would always sleep with Papa Ray. But at night when we would turn out the lights, Papa would always say, "Goodnight, Mama". And to this day when I lay down at her house, I still expect to hear those words when I turn out the lights. One very happy memory is every Christmas morning, Papa Ray would always get up and start clapping his hands and would start singing "Christmas times a-comin". Every Christmas morning that is the first thing that enters my mind and I can still hear his voice singing. I could go on and on about my memories, but these are just a few that come to mind. I can't wait to tell my children what a wonderful grandfather that I had. And I know that they will have an idea, because my dad is so similar to my grandfather. I see Papa Ray in him every time I see him with my nephew and I think that it is the sweetest thing. My dad, like my grandfather, is always tinkering on something, always willing to take you on a ride on a tractor, takes you fishing, picks on you, or gives you a big hug. So I know that even though my children will never get to meet their great-grandfather, they will see him through their own grandfather. They may not realize that they are experiencing Papa Ray, but I will know. And as I journey to have my children, I like to think that Papa Ray is holding that baby in his arms and taking care of it until the Lord sends it to me. I know this because I know my nephew Barrett has seen him, because Papa has kissed his toes (don't ask), just to let us know that he is there taking care of our children. I also like to think that Papa welcomed Royce home and had a good conversation about their granddaughters. Hopefully we make them proud. And I hope that in addition to their mansions in the sky that the Lord gave those simple farmers a piece of land that they could grow their crops on. Because like Royce, my grandfather instilled in me a love of the land that only a farmer could appreciate. We are grounded in our Father up above because only farmer knows what it is to truly nurture God's creation. Our grandfathers are our roots and they are what help make us grow into the people that we are.
Thank you God, for giving me a compass by which to live. Thank you for the years that I had to know and love my grandfather. Thank you for making him an example on how to live my daily Christian walk with you. Thank you for your grace and the knowledge that I will get to spend eternity with you and your son and with those that I hold dear. Thank you because I know that there is a better home waiting in the sky. I just pray for your comfort to Royce's family. Please fill them up with your spirit and give them the strength to carry on. It is only by your mercy and grace that we can hope. This is not the end. This is not the last we will see their faces. Thank you with blessing this earth with such Godly men. Thank you for giving us Grandfathers.
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