Monday, January 29, 2007
So Glad I Called
My grandfather (dad's side) suffered a massive stroke last week and is not expected to make it through the week. He is completely paralyzed on his right side, and is unable to talk.I never quite knew what to call him, so I just avoided calling him anything. He was my dad's stepfather, so I referred to him as J.D. if I needed to say something about him. But regardless, he was my grandfather. Even if I never quite figured out what to call him.
I wrote about him in October 2005, saying:
When my step-grandfather on my dad's side showed up at my Nikah (Muslim wedding ceremony) and gave me my grandmother's beautiful diamond ring, I was deeply moved. Here was this man, not my blood relation, hugging me and telling me that he knew he wasn't my biological grandfather, but he loved me like a granddaughter. He has many, many biological grandchildren, but he picked me for one of Granny Margrett's most precious possessions. And he will never know how much that moment inspired me to be a better stepmother to Ariana.
He heard about the post and read it. He loved it; I was glad.
In the past year or so, he started doing some rather odd things. I was kind of ticked off, and didn't return his calls.
And when my mom went to hajj, one of the things I asked her to pray was to remove grudges from my heart. And sure enough, while she was gone, one of the things I decided to do was call J.D.
I picked up the phone and talked to him earlier this month. We said how much we loved each other and talked about this and that. I am so very happy I made that call.
Because now it would be too late...and so I will always remember that time does run out, and I just barely beat it this time. Next time, I won't wait so long.
Update: He passed away early this morning, February 1.
Labels: family
posted by Anisa @ 12:05 PM |