Note to Self: I miss you terribly.
I recently remembered how refreshing it is to spend some quality time with family, even though the circumstances we were meeting under weren't too desirable.
On Tuesday morning, Katrina and I both got phone calls from our parents telling us that our grandfather (on Dad's side) had died. Katrina and I never really knew him, unfortunately. We remember a couple of times when he visited, and also the times when we got to visit him in New York. I still miss that old house of his every now and then.
The news was not surprising, seeing as he had been having serious trouble for a few days, and he was quite old. Regardless, tears were still shed as Kat and I made plans to go down to Utah and visit our aunts and uncle to mourn with them.
When we got to my aunt's house, the mood was very solemn. I wasn't sure how to react to anything. I wasn't sure how people in my family reacted to death, especially that of a father and grandfather. So, we met and talked, but for the most part stayed quiet. We spent the day catching up (Kat and I hadn't seen my uncle and his wife--my other aunt--for a good 6 or 7 years). I had forgotten how cheerful and funny my uncle was. He helped in lightening the mood quite a bit.
His sister, the aunt whose house we were hanging out at, was taking the news of her father's death hard. She hadn't had a chance to see him recently, so she was having a hard time accepting that he was already gone.
As the day wore on, my uncle decided to treat us with some piano playing--he had been learning how to play recently. At first, it was met with an almost irritable silence because emotions were still raw. But his sister soon joined him, and the mood lifted. I watched her face brighten as they played a couple of songs clumsily, and it was beautiful.
I'm not sure if I had ever seen those two together before; but in that moment, I was able to fully appreciate the dynamics that they shared as siblings. Earlier they had remarked that Katrina and I had something special for being best friends; but they didn't realize that Kat and I both look up to them for the quietly loving attitude they have toward one another.
I watched them play the piano together by the glow of the piano lamp and their smiles and realized that they would miss this, just as I would miss the time I have with Katrina. What we have is special and beautiful, and I can say with confidence that I've learned it from the best.
As we left my aunt's house for the evening--both with wide grins on our faces--I remembered how wonderful it is to feel that quiet love being sent--non-overwhelmingly--in my direction. I felt so uplifted just by being with my aunts and uncle that day that my grandfather's passing was almost overshadowed by the remembrance of the love that we share (not to mention the hilarious stories they shared about my grandfather when they were all younger).
On Tuesday morning, Katrina and I both got phone calls from our parents telling us that our grandfather (on Dad's side) had died. Katrina and I never really knew him, unfortunately. We remember a couple of times when he visited, and also the times when we got to visit him in New York. I still miss that old house of his every now and then.
The news was not surprising, seeing as he had been having serious trouble for a few days, and he was quite old. Regardless, tears were still shed as Kat and I made plans to go down to Utah and visit our aunts and uncle to mourn with them.
When we got to my aunt's house, the mood was very solemn. I wasn't sure how to react to anything. I wasn't sure how people in my family reacted to death, especially that of a father and grandfather. So, we met and talked, but for the most part stayed quiet. We spent the day catching up (Kat and I hadn't seen my uncle and his wife--my other aunt--for a good 6 or 7 years). I had forgotten how cheerful and funny my uncle was. He helped in lightening the mood quite a bit.
His sister, the aunt whose house we were hanging out at, was taking the news of her father's death hard. She hadn't had a chance to see him recently, so she was having a hard time accepting that he was already gone.
As the day wore on, my uncle decided to treat us with some piano playing--he had been learning how to play recently. At first, it was met with an almost irritable silence because emotions were still raw. But his sister soon joined him, and the mood lifted. I watched her face brighten as they played a couple of songs clumsily, and it was beautiful.
I'm not sure if I had ever seen those two together before; but in that moment, I was able to fully appreciate the dynamics that they shared as siblings. Earlier they had remarked that Katrina and I had something special for being best friends; but they didn't realize that Kat and I both look up to them for the quietly loving attitude they have toward one another.
I watched them play the piano together by the glow of the piano lamp and their smiles and realized that they would miss this, just as I would miss the time I have with Katrina. What we have is special and beautiful, and I can say with confidence that I've learned it from the best.
As we left my aunt's house for the evening--both with wide grins on our faces--I remembered how wonderful it is to feel that quiet love being sent--non-overwhelmingly--in my direction. I felt so uplifted just by being with my aunts and uncle that day that my grandfather's passing was almost overshadowed by the remembrance of the love that we share (not to mention the hilarious stories they shared about my grandfather when they were all younger).
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