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4. Do you get on with your grandpa?
My paternal grandfather died when I was 10. I always got on well with him - but I only knew him till I was 10. I don't know what our relationship would be like if he'd lived longer. He could be both very kind and very mean. He was a complicated person - as most people are. He was always good to me and I loved visiting his house, with his over-ripe bananas (yuck), Lorna Doone cookies (yum!), a nice hill in the backyard to roll down, color tv - I remember watching one Apollo takeoff there, and his English accent that he never lost after 53 years in the USA. He came to Michigan from Nottinghamshire in 1920 and never saw his parents again, as he didn't go back for a visit until 1953, with my dad. He was housepainter by trade and could also draw very well and wrote at least one very good poem. The poem and his art show that he had a sensitive side, but I think he was mostly pragmatic. He was born on November 11, 1900 and turned 18 on Armistice Day. He didn't have to serve in WWI; his 2-year-older brother wasn't so fortunate. (Though he did survive the war, lived in England all his life and, if I remember correctly, outlived grampa.)
My maternal grandfather died a couple of years ago - the same day as David Bowie, actually. That wouldn't have impressed him one bit! He was actually both my step-grandfather and my great uncle. My actual grandfather died at age 28 when my mom was 12 and I never knew him. (I know he was funny and handsome and artistic; photos of he and my gramma look like photos of old movie stars.) My grandmother was 28 years old with five kids, ages 3 to 12. My grandfather's brother, who was 4 years younger than they were, married my gramma later - I don't remember how much later; not more than a couple of years, I think. They had 2 kids together and he raised all 7 of them as if they were his own. (So I have 2 aunts that are less than 10 years older than me and also my cousins!) Before he died, my sister asked how they got together. At the same time, gramma said, "I took advantage of him" and grampa said, "She needed me." Then they took each other's hands and he said, "We fell in love later." He was a Korean war vet, a disciplinarian, a devout Christian, a talented engineer (without a degree!), and very generous. I did get along well with him, though I never discussed politics or religion with him. We didn't agree much on politics, and we did agree, for the most part, on religion, but I still wouldn't discuss them. I used to warn friends that they should never talk politics or religion with grampa, even if they agreed with him 100%, because it would still manage to turn into a harangue! But yes, he was a good stepfather, a good father, and a good grampa and we did get along. I miss him, though I miss my grandmother more right now. (She died on February 20 this year, so it's a more recent loss.)
My paternal grandfather died when I was 10. I always got on well with him - but I only knew him till I was 10. I don't know what our relationship would be like if he'd lived longer. He could be both very kind and very mean. He was a complicated person - as most people are. He was always good to me and I loved visiting his house, with his over-ripe bananas (yuck), Lorna Doone cookies (yum!), a nice hill in the backyard to roll down, color tv - I remember watching one Apollo takeoff there, and his English accent that he never lost after 53 years in the USA. He came to Michigan from Nottinghamshire in 1920 and never saw his parents again, as he didn't go back for a visit until 1953, with my dad. He was housepainter by trade and could also draw very well and wrote at least one very good poem. The poem and his art show that he had a sensitive side, but I think he was mostly pragmatic. He was born on November 11, 1900 and turned 18 on Armistice Day. He didn't have to serve in WWI; his 2-year-older brother wasn't so fortunate. (Though he did survive the war, lived in England all his life and, if I remember correctly, outlived grampa.)
My maternal grandfather died a couple of years ago - the same day as David Bowie, actually. That wouldn't have impressed him one bit! He was actually both my step-grandfather and my great uncle. My actual grandfather died at age 28 when my mom was 12 and I never knew him. (I know he was funny and handsome and artistic; photos of he and my gramma look like photos of old movie stars.) My grandmother was 28 years old with five kids, ages 3 to 12. My grandfather's brother, who was 4 years younger than they were, married my gramma later - I don't remember how much later; not more than a couple of years, I think. They had 2 kids together and he raised all 7 of them as if they were his own. (So I have 2 aunts that are less than 10 years older than me and also my cousins!) Before he died, my sister asked how they got together. At the same time, gramma said, "I took advantage of him" and grampa said, "She needed me." Then they took each other's hands and he said, "We fell in love later." He was a Korean war vet, a disciplinarian, a devout Christian, a talented engineer (without a degree!), and very generous. I did get along well with him, though I never discussed politics or religion with him. We didn't agree much on politics, and we did agree, for the most part, on religion, but I still wouldn't discuss them. I used to warn friends that they should never talk politics or religion with grampa, even if they agreed with him 100%, because it would still manage to turn into a harangue! But yes, he was a good stepfather, a good father, and a good grampa and we did get along. I miss him, though I miss my grandmother more right now. (She died on February 20 this year, so it's a more recent loss.)