Hey you,
It's been a couple of years now since you left this place we once shared together and it hasn't been the same without you. Every year we celebrate your life and remember how wonderful you are, but it never gets easier to process your absence.
Cancer took you from me when I was only a little girl. I didn't know what death was let alone think it would happen so soon. You touched everyone around you and made people smile. You made me smile.
Losing people is always difficult but losing your best friend is something nobody can prepare you for. It's almost like misplacing your keys except you no longer have that person to remind you where you left them last. You loose that puzzle piece that fit so perfectly next to you and now all that is left is an empty space or reminder that that particular space can never be filled again.
You were more than a best friend to me. More than a grandfather and most definitely more than a part of the family. You were the first person I fell in love with.
My fondest memories of you are the times I would lay in your hospital bed with you and watch Disney movies together. We would eat peanut butter crackers and you would laugh when I ate too much of them. You gave me a shoulder to cry on when I scraped my knee or when I wasn't having a good day at school. You were always there for me.
You may have left us, but you left behind your grace and wisdom. I love hearing the stories of how you would go to the beach with the family. You would walk onto the beach, spread your arms out and say, "All this is ours." It was short, sweet, and held more meaning than most people can comprehend.
I may not have been around to remember all of those special moments that my father and your wife got to witness, but you still left an imprint on my heart.
"All this" is more than a short phrase that you decided to say out of the blue. To me, it represents how to handle life. Take in everything you can and appreciate all life has to over. Don't drown on the negative and don't worry yourself to no end. The world has a million and one things to offer and one bad day will not get in the way of that if you refuse to let it.
His motto has grown to become the way I think of things when in a tough situation; That is why my first tattoo was his saying tattooed on my arm so I could see it everywhere I go.
I know he is with me every step of the way and I hope to become at least half of the person he was. I hope he is looking down on me and is proud of his little grandchild taking the world by storm and not letting myself get defeated by other people's judgment and negativity.
Living life without you was never a part of the plan, but life is never planned out. I will always love you and miss you and think about you every day, just like everyone else in the family does.
15 years is a long time without you, but I know you'll be waiting for me when it becomes my time to be with you again. Until then, you will watch over me and be my shadow that follows my ever move.
I will always love you and miss you greatly.
Sincerely,
Your little Grandchild
