I am a little early in getting this posted, but as we will be gone this coming weekend, I wanted to get this post done. :-)
On Monday the 12th of July it will be a whole year that my beloved grandfather (lovingly known as 'Bampa') passed away. He suffered through pancreatic cancer for a whole year and half, maybe longer.
Bampa was not my biological grandfather, but I never thought of him as a 'step' grandfather. He was always just Bampa. He loved us tremendously and didn't care that we were "related". I was able to enjoy 17 full years with him, though I suppose when I was a baby, I didn't care much!
Bampa was always so very kind. I loved how he always made me feel important and never gave up on me. He was always there to encourage me in my fiddle playing, book writing, and whatever projects I might be doing at the time. His famous question was always "What have you been up to?" and it was always the YOU that caught my attention. He never wanted self admiration. He only cared about others around him and had such a great interest in what others were doing. You could always try to talk about what he was doing, but he somehow always turned the conversation around so that you were once again talking about your self.
I was his little princess, though I am not the only princess he had. However, he always made me feel like I was the most important person in the world, no matter what. I didn't have to worry about how my hair looked, or how I dressed to get his approval. He loved me for who I WAS, not for who I looked like or acted like.
Whenever my Nana would take me on my special birthday lunch, and he needed to come along for some reason or other, he always let me sit up front. It was my time with Nana, not his, and he made sure I enjoyed myself to the fullest. He was always putting me first and wasn't selfish.
Bampa always had such an interest in life. He was always willing to learn new thing, meet new people, and go to new places. He absolutely loved living on the ranch, and though he grew up in Brooklyn NY, he could sure fool you with his cowboy costume. :-)
He loved working the cattle, giving the shots, running them through the chute, whatever needed to be done, he was there.
Although he lived right behind our house, not more than five steps away, I could never get enough of him. Any time I popped up for a visit, he was always there to give me a big hug and kiss and tease me like no one else.
Any time we came home from a bull sale, all of us kids would rush up to tell Nana and Bampa how the sale went and what not. They were always so supportive of us.
Now it is no longer "they, them, or y'all". It is only "her, she, and you." However, Bampa lived a wonderful life and enjoyed it to it's fullest. There was never a dull moment when he was around.
I love you, Bampa, and miss you so much.
Sarah
