Gentle and Kind

Rachel here. Gentle and Kind. Two words used to describe my Grandpa Jack. Simple words? Probably, but no two words could be more perfect. Monday morning June 15th, I received a call from my mom saying my grandfather was not expected to make it through the day. What? He was a fighter. He fought for nearly 25 years. He was superman. he always came out of it. Tuesday morning June 16th my superman was gone. I quickly realized I wouldn't be able to make it back to Iowa for his service. The devastation set in. I called Bryan... he rushed home. He said we would make it there no matter what. The preparation set in.

We needed to pack for the regular scenario... a family visit out of town. We needed to pack our hospital bags in case we needed to go in while on our trip. We needed to pack in case there was a baby born in Iowa. Our car was packed with various Vera Bradley patterns for the corresponding scenario. The following day we visited the doctor and explained to her what was going on and that I WOULD be traveling and could I have copies of all my test results through the pregnancy and any other documentation an out of state doctor may need. My blood pressure was taken. For the first time in both pregnancies it was high. This triggered an NST... stress test for the baby. The beginning of the test showed that the baby's heartbeat was flat lining. This resulted in an ultrasound that checked for various things like the level of amniotic fluid around the baby and her lung function among other things. All looked well... I passed... we were on our way.

After driving 2 days (not something we would have done if I weren't pregnant), we were with my family in Iowa (The first of many hurdles we would cross)... trying to wrap our heads around what was happening.

Thursday June 18th we faced the wake and funeral of my gentle and kind grandfather. It was probably the most gut-wrenching thing I've ever gone through. He had so many people in his life that loved him; it was incredible to see them all file in to pay their respects. People told stories. My mom even spoke. I've never been more proud to call her my mother. She spoke from the heart... my brother and I cried.

Friday morning June 19th we buried my gentle and kind Grandpa Jack. Something I never in a million years thought we would do so soon. We were given so many chances to love him. He was given to many lives to live.

I feel so blessed to have had him see me graduate high school and college, see me get married, meet his first great grandchild, and know that he was to be a great grandfather once again. I love you Grandpa and miss you terribly... I only hope I've made you proud.