My Papa Boot Passed Away
Wednesday, February 17th, 2010
Over that last day, I have really struggled with the thought of missing my papa boot as we called him. At the age of 10 or so I was out at our Ranch, helping my grandparents every summer. We worked in the hay field, built fence, and fixed equipment when it broke down. Papa was an amazing person, he was always fixing things, telling stories of the old days, as he was born in 1917. He was such a hard worker, all the way up to when he died. He would have been 93 years old this year, and he was still out fixing gates, feeding the cows, and putting equipment back in the field. Some of my fondest memories are under the swather fixing blades, or remembering his leathery old hands wrapping barb wire, his great big smile, and my favorite: banging his silver ware on this plate with my daughter Grace. Seeing him with my kids makes me cry every time. It hurts so much, to know that’s gone. But it brings such joy to celebrate his life, and the impact he had on the world, and the amazing legacy he left behind.
I will miss him, a lot, and there will always be a void in my life, because there is no one like him, to ever fill it. I hope I can be half the man he was.
Rest in Peace Papa Boot. I love you, and Miss you so much. I know you are happy and in a much better place. I will see you again some day.
