On Saturday, Eugene "Butch" Reicks died - Ruby's last living great grandfather. It was a bittersweet occasion, as he had been suffering and is much more comfortable now. Of course, I can't help but tear up, when I start to think of all the great memories I had with him and how much I will miss him. On top of it all, the timing made it particularly challenging for my family. My cousin Nate got married to his now wife Kristen on Saturday. So there was lots to be happy about and lots of celebrating to do ( I will post more about the wedding later). Although there was nothing more we could do for Grandpa, our minds and hearts continued to remember our loss and how much Grandpa must be enjoying watching the party from up above. I keep thinking about Ruby will miss out on, by never really knowing him.
Everyone will have different things that they will remember about my grandpa. Some will remember that he was a farmer, that he had huge strong hands, and that he worked hard. Some will remember that he loved to travel to places like Alaska, Germany, and Canada and that he loved to watch the history channel. I will remember who he was as a grandpa. He was a teaser. He knew just how to razz you in a way that didn't make you feel hurt, but usually special that he was picking on you. He didn't picked favorites. He teased us all the same - which was a lot. I remember spending a week with my grandparents during the summer and in the morning, he would take us along for "coffee time". Coffee time meant that he would hop from local bar to local bar between 8 and 11 in the morning and chat with his friends (he had many), drink coffee, and if us kids were lucky we might even get a box of Boston Baked Beans. You wouldn't think this would be so exciting for a kid, but we felt excited that we got to something special with him, proud that he was our grandpa and that he knew people everywhere we went, and it got us out of helping Grandma with the vacuuming or cooking dinner. My grandpa was good at play. Always up for a ball game (when his body still allowed), ready with a gag (he had quite the collection of gag gifts from birthdays over the years), excited for a party, and always up for a game of cards - whether it be Euchre, 500, Wizard, or a simple game of Crazy 8's. Grandpa loved to play cards, and he played with his own style. He was never timid with his bids, always willing to bet the the blinds would be there for him or his partner would get him through. As grandkids, we were all anxious to be old enough to play, and rarely turned down the chance. My grandpa made people laugh. He had many running jokes. We were usually all giggling at the dinner table, when he would convince one of the youngest that there was a spider on the window, so that when they turned to look he could steal their dessert. Even as his body got old and he needed more and more help to get out of his chair, as soon as you took him seriously and would try to help he would grab your hand and pull you on to his lap (he was still awfully strong!). I felt lucky to have several chances to get to know Grandpa better during some trips my family took to the Rockies and to Niagara Falls and during a few Christmases, that Grandma and he spent with our family. Oddly enough during these times, I remember him singing. His favorite song had to be a polka that went something like... "You can have her, I dont want her, she's too fat for me". Always teasing. He and Grandma also liked to tell me about the night they met. They were both in a wedding and that Grandpa sang "Found a peanut" to my Grandma. Far from a love song, but I suppose demonstrating his love her life... and she took the bait. The final songs being at Christmas Eve mass. Grandpa surely wasn't know for his singing skills, but at the end of mass, he would bellow out "Joy to the World" without any worry of who might be listening. My grandpa was never afraid to be himself.
Since Ruby will never know these things about Grandpa, he will have to live on in my words and stories. I will tell her how excited Grandpa was about Ruby. When I would go to the nursing home to visit, he would see me and even though he couldn't remember my name, after looking at me for a few minutes a light would come on, and he would ask about my baby. When Ruby was born, my grandma had a hard time remembering Ruby's name, and although Grandpa didn't know even know if he had eaten dinner that day, Grandpa would remember it. When Ruby was around Grandpa, he would make squeeks and moans - his attempt at teasing a 9 month old. When life got tough and his mind and body were failing him, my grandpa never gave up on being a great-grandpa, a grandpa, a dad, or a husband. Grandpa brought smiles to many people, but most importantly, he taught us the importance of play, hard work, strength, family, and love.
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