Grandpa Haney

2019 started off a little rocky because from New Years until the middle of February our lives were pretty consumed with the failing health of my dear Grandpa. In about August 2018 my mom and her family made the decision to move my Grandpa to Utah to an assisted living facility in Bountiful. It wasn't an easy decision to move Grandpa away from his beloved Idaho and it actually caused a lot of long term contention for my Mom and her siblings. Aside from all that, it gave my mom and my family some cherished months of being able to spend a lot more time with my Grandpa. We made the trip of to Twin Falls frequently and visiting my Grandparents was always a cherished part of my childhood and adulthood. I am grateful that I was able to take Sam and even Gavin a few times. But having my Grandpa so close was very special for us, especially my mom who became his primary caretaker. 

Seeing my Grandpa succumb to ill health and aging was not easy for any of us. He always seemed so invincible to mortality. I know for a fact that for me and many of my cousins he was our personal hero. The person we first thought of when we were thinking of someone great, inspiring, or someone to look up to. I loved my Grandpa so much and I miss him and my Grandma every day. They were such a big part of my life, sometimes during regular moments of the day I find myself missing them, their voices, the smell of their house, the drive up to Idaho, and the ability to talk to them.

My Grandpa Haney died February 8th 2019. I was able to spend a lot of cherished time with him the months before his passing. On my birthday I had a really amazing conversation about the day I was born with him that I will cherish forever. Just a few days before he died Gavin had a very sweet moment with him that I will cherish forever. I am grateful that Sam was able to get to know my Grandpa and think of him as his own and I know that he cherishes the memories he has as well. 

Aside from all my childhood memories of my Grandparents, I am so grateful to have memories of them from my adulthood that include Sam and Gavin. I remember the first time I brought Sam to Idaho and my Grandpa put Sam to work in the horse pasture to dig ditches for the irrigation water. Sam was very unprepared for this kind of work and was shocked that my 90 year old Grandpa could out dig a 23 year old young man. After that Sam always brought work clothes whenever we visited Idaho. 

After my Grandma passed away my Grandpa moved to an apartment at an independent living center in Twin Falls. We took Gavin to visit him a few times and Gavin loved it there. We would stay in a little room  there and play Quiddler with my Grandpa until late at night, keeping the kids up way past their bed times. Gavin loved to ride on the front of my Grandpa's walker and wave to all the residents who lived there. We were definitely a rowdy group when we visited him at Bridgeview.

In the last few months of my Grandpa's life we were able to spend the 4th of July with him in Utah. See him on Halloween, spend Christmas with him. All holidays we usually wouldn't be able to spend with him. I love that we continued to make memories clear up until the end of his life.

I miss Grandpa so much but I am grateful to know that families are forever and to know that he was reunited with my sweet Grandma. I am forever grateful to have had him here on earth for as long as we did. I am grateful for a life full of memories and wisdom from him. I was able to spend a few hours by his side the night before he died. I won't lie, it was really hard. But it was also very special. Life is so precious. I feel like everything we went through at the beginning of this year with him taught me so much and gave me so much perspective on what is truly important in this life. I sure love you Grandpa Haney, until we meet again I will keep being a tiger and do my best to make you proud.