A Fathers final Embrace

I remember being a small boy, around 10 or eleven. My family and I were living in Fair Grove Missouri. I was sound asleep one night when suddenly I was awoken by commotion and shuffling about in the hallway. It was the sound of my mother and father hurrying about, almost frantically. I wasn't sure what was going on but I could tell that something was wrong. And it was.

I crawled out of my bed, opened the door and made my way down the hallway to see what the fuss was all about. There I saw my dad and with a look upon his face I will likely never forget. You see, it seems that his father, my grandpa, had suffered a severe stroke while painting his fence and had been rushed to the hospital. I wasn't there, but in my mind I imagine Grandpa with an old rusty can of paint at his side, a highly overworked and frayed brush in his hand, and the sun in his eyes, working tirelessly to finish the fence before sundown...when he collapsed.

I can still see the taillights of my fathers Nissan pickup racing down the dark driveway as he headed off to be by his fathers side for what possibly could be the last time.

Grandpa lived in St. Louis, so my dad had about a 3 hour drive ahead of him. Dad drove like any son would drive when faced with prospect of losing his father. To hear him say it, it's a miracle that didn't crash or get arrested because he told us he was driving over 95 mph most of the way. God was watching over him that morning.

Dad drove for almost two hours and was just 20 miles from the hospital when he said he felt a sense of peace come over him. Like a warm blanket of comfort, yet a sense of sadness as he realized that his dad had passed. Nobody told him, he just knew. So much so that he decided to pull off the main highway and stop at a gas station for a bathroom break and some coffee. As he sat drinking his coffee, his cell phone rang and it was his younger brother Gary. Gary told dad what he already knew, Grandpa was gone. He had passed about 15 minutes earlier, at nearly the same time my dad had his overwhelming sense of calm.

I believe with all my heart that Grandpa passed and saw his son driving like a maniac, and came down to give him one last hug as to say "Son, slow down, it's okay, I've already gone but I'm going to be alright."

God is amazing, and I'm so happy to know that my Grandpa is with him now.