A Friday in 04'

Sitting at that flower-clothed table my feet could barely touch the ground. My hands were too small to shove all the food I wanted to in my mouth. Yet...I had you there to help me and make me laugh. I saw you, I knew you, and I wanted to be in that moment with you for as long as I could. 

Guadalupe Sada -- my great grandfather. A man I grew up hearing about. Remembering him in photos and videos. Only seeing him in small flashbacks from my childhood: running on the grainy sand alongside the ocean shore. Seeing you with my father holding in your hand those Disney chairs; those chairs I always talked about. The love that my family has for you is greater than anything I've ever known. You were a simple man, but also a man of respect, and love. You loved my father more than words will ever explain. You had awe for my sister and me.... because we were a part of him.

 

From war stories to tears I always wanted to know more about you. Knowing how much you meant to my father always made me cry when he talked about you. 

"Savannah, you know he was a really good man. He was stern but loved like no other." My father could only show a smile on his face when he talked about Grampy. (A name I must have given him when I was about two lol) 

I remember asking about Grampy a lot when I was about five. Sitting in my room with my father asking him where he was and if he ever watched us. My father would tuck me in and told me that he was in the clouds. Reassuring me that he never left. I believed him and I continue to do so. 

A Friday in 04'. 

I am brought back to a memory I wish I knew more about. A person I wish I could tell my stories too. Showing him the writings I create about the importance of family. Family values he taught my father. I think and look at this photo often in my room. On my desk, you sit there. A framed memory. Wishing the memories were deeper... I know the stories I hear about you draw me closer to who you were.