Trip Recap

I flew home from Austin yesterday after a wonderful 6 days with my family. Here are some of the biggest event from my trip:

1. Seeing my parent's house was mind boggling. The last time I saw it was roughly halfway through construction, but it is now almost complete and so beautiful. I look forward to creating many memories there - riding fourwheelers through the trails, fishing on the pond, hiking to look for critters, and mostly spending time with my loved ones.

2. Saturday, Mom, Sid and I drove to Spring to see my five year old niece Makenzie play her first T-ball game. Makenzie told me she was "taking a little break" from horse lessons, so T-ball is now the new focus. She told her Mommy when she woke up, "Today is a BIG day for me." She hit the ball farther than any other girl, and I think she might have been the only one who knew to run to first base! One boy walked to the bases with his hands covering his face, another hit the ball, picked it up and walked with it to first base, and another, after hearing his Dad yell for him to "touch the base," ran over and literally stooped down and touched the base with his little fingers. So precious.

3. Sunday, Sid and I had a great visit with Granny and Grandad. I was surprised at how well Grandad looked and how chatty he was. He has been organizing the cleanup of the shared courtyard in their assisted living center for weeks. He had the staff clean out the fish pond and had asked my Aunt Mary to find a couple of white doves, which she brought over earlier in the weekend. The four of us had such a good time sitting in the courtyard, watching "Whitey" and "Blanca" get acquainted with their new home. Grandad was so proud and joyful to see his idea fufilled, and we talked about the references in the Bible of doves and peace.

4. After packing the rent house most of the day, we all went to bed early. In the middle of the night, Grandad called to tell Mom that he was having a spell. The Hospice nurse was there in less than an hour to give him medicine and help him sleep. Tuesday was a very hard day for all of us. Mom and I arrived at their apartment late that morning, and while Grandad slept, we took Granny out to run some errands. When we arrived back, the Hospice nurse told us that his condition had really changed and that we probably had only 24-48 hours left with him, or maybe a week or two at the most. I feel so blessed that I was there to hold his hand and tell him I love him.

5. I flew home Wednesday, and when I landed, Mom said Grandad was more alert and had visits from my cousin Mark and his family. While everyone sat in the courtyard, Grandad had a private chat with the Hospice nurse. She told my mom that he had picked his words very carefully so he wouldn't hurt any feelings, but he didn't want everyone standing around his bed waiting for him to die! It was freaky for him to see everyone standing around his bed. Mom and I shared a laugh, knowing that even in his last days, he is as fiesty as ever.

I am so thankful for my wonderful trip. It's very strange and heartbreaking, knowing I will probably never see my Grandad alive again, but as I've written before, I am so lucky to be nearly 30 with him in my life. He has instilled in me a love of the Lord, baptized me in the Medina River, gave me my most cherished childhood memories in my favorite place in all the world, Bandera, taught me through his example to help others, love nature, and always thank God for family. One of these days, I'll post some old pictures, but today is not the day.