Love

My Mom has been cleaning out her room and she found a box full of keepsakes. In it, she found a scrap of paper wrapped around 3 pennies. It has, in a child's scrawl, "I love you" on one side. On the other is my Mom's handwriting "To Grandpa, From Julie 6/18/82." I was six. And apparently my Grandpa, a gruff WWII veteran, kept my present for many years and at some point my Mom found it and saved it as well.

June 18th is my Grandpa's birthday and it's been almost 5 years since he passed away. I always knew that my Grandpa loved me, but he was never as demonstrative of his love as my Grandma was. I get the feeling that he knew she'd take of spoiling us, and as long as she did a good enough job, he'd let her do it. When he was in the hospice and we were pretty much there round the clock those last days, we spent the time watching old home movies. There was one taken at another of his birthdays. I was older - mid-teen years. I was very into saving things, especially fun scraps of paper - notes, cards, wrapping paper. I watched this video of my Grandpa very carefully unwrapping a gift, careful not to rip the paper, and then hand it to me. Again, the image doesn't fit with my memory of a gruff, very non-sentimental Grandpa. I'm starting to think that it was only his exterior - all for show. In little, very un-noticable ways, he was just a softy who loved to spoil his grandchildren. I miss you, Grandpa. I love you.