My grandparents
have been dead for one resp. two years. I still grieve for them, and I cannot
let go. October 31st and November 5th are two absolutely
black days for me … Within one year (February 13th 2009 to March 3rd
2010) I lost both my grandparents.
They were
my replacement parents, and they were absolute figures of authority, to whom I
almost never put up an argument.
My mother
was always beside herself when I wanted to visit my grandparents yet again. At
her funeral, anyone there told me that I had had a very special bond with my
grandma. I had a nervous breakdown at her grave, and I actually almost fell
into the open grave. While I am writing this, tears keep rolling down my
cheeks, because I have to think so intensely of my grandparents.
The funeral
brought people back together that I remembered well from my childhood, and they
also told me funny stories from my childhood days:
For example
that I always was sucking my thumb, and that I had had a cuddly toy turtle that
I had with me absolutely all the time
— but all of a sudden, that
turtle had vanished. The ladies from my grandma's shop (my grandma, my mom, and
my aunt …) all started searching everywhere, because I would have thrown a
massive tantrum without my turtle. I could still remember that I had been at a
neighbour's house, to check out their rabbits … And there was the turtle: When
I had to go to the bathroom, it had obviously fallen into the bathtub when I
had put the turtle in the rim of the tub :-)!
As a child,
I once also fell into a fountain in our town, because I had tried to kick the
butt of a friend of mine. Doing so, I lost my shoe, and it plunged into the
fountain. I went after it, to fish it out again, lost my balance and landed in
the water. Soaking wet, and with my laughing friend at my side, I went to my
grandma, who dressed me in fresh clothes and then only said: "Child, how
on Earth did you do that?" Later, we all had a good laugh on that story,
drinking cocoa with honey.
My grandpa
was an authority figure; I could never be fresh to him, or put up an argument
when he said something. His word was the law, no matter if yay or nay!
When my
grandpa had his 80th birthday, he was unwrapping his presents, and
we grand-children were supposed to help him. All of a sudden, he made a remark,
and we all had to laugh. My mum came in and asked what was going on. And when
we said that grandpa just had made one of his funny remarks, my mother was
really surprised, because she did not really know this side of her father :-)))
…
I used to
make a phone-call to my grandparents once a week. Today, I now that they are
angels who are close to me every single day of my life!!!!
