Five year ago today we had to say goodbye to a very sweet gentle man with the biggest heart. A day doesn't go by that we don't think about him. He will be forever missed by his family and friends. I will never forget how Noah reacted that morning. That one small tear right before his Grandpa went to Heaven. I know his Grandpa spoke to him and let him know he was going to be ok. He always told our girls that as long as they did their best no matter what the outcome, he would always be proud of them.
This is a paper Morgan wrote about her Grandpa:
Singing Makes Me Think of You
"Do you people realize that tomorrow is State Contest?" asked Mr. Nabors. "You are messing around and you call yourself the top choir?"Just then the back door of the Little Theater opened and in walked Blake Ridenour and my mom. He points at me and beckons me to him. I was so afraid to get up as Mr. Nabors continued on in his fit of rage. I put my index finger up to tell my mom that I would be there in a little bit. A look of frustration filled her face and she mouths the word, "Now."
My heart dropped to the floor. All I was thinking was, "What is wrong now? Did I do something wrong? Is Noah okay?" And that is when it hit me, Grandpa. I almost started crying right then. I slowly stood up so I could make my way to the back door. As I reached the door my mom stepped out, but as soon as I saw her, I knew that she had been crying. "What?" I asked. I kept repeating until she answered.
" I just came from Galion," she said hesitantly. " Your Grandpa just passed away."
I burst into tears and buried my head in my mom’s chest. I cried until my stomach hurt. I kept thinking about the things he would never be there to see. After a little while all I wanted was to go home. Rachael Roth had seen the whole scene from inside the office. She came out after a while and asked, "Do you want me to help you get your books?"
I nodded and we started the hardest walk of my life. No matter where I went my classmates would be there. As we walked through the cafeteria so many were staring at my red, blotchy eyes. I hung my head thinking that no one would notice until we made it to the safety of the locker room. I gathered my things and Rachael and I gave each other a big hug.
Then something popped in my mind, State Contest. I had completely forgotten in a matter of five or ten minutes. I knew I wouldn’t make it through the performance. I had to tell Mr. Nabors.
My mom and I waited in the music hallway until the bell rang. I slowly opened the door. Mr. Nabors saw my face and said, "Hey, little one, are you okay?"
I walked to the table where I had eaten lunch earlier that day. I started to say what happened but then broke down crying. All of my friends and Mrs. Kunz ran to my side and gave me a big hug. They had known everything that had been going on. This group of people had helped me through Grandpa’s sickness and were ready to help me deal with his death. My mom proceeded to explain the situation and that I didn’t want to go to contest the next day. Mr. Nabors understood and told me to go home to be with family.
We left the school and went to tell my sister. After this my mom drove us to my grandma’s house.
As we arrived at Grandma’s house, so many memories flooded my mind. Grandpa taught us how to fish in his pond and hit golf balls in his yard. I didn’t even make it in the door without crying. My grandma was there to offer big hugs. As people saw us kids crying they began to cry again as well. Many ‘I love you’s’ and ‘He’s in a better place’ were said, but in the back of my mind was state contest.
We had been preparing for a very long time, and I didn’t want all of that to go down the tubes.
My dad had asked what I was going to do. "Mrs. Baker told me to think about it and make my decision tomorrow."
Through all of this, my grandma had been keeping herself busy by cleaning and yet had been listening the whole time. " You know, Morgan," she said quietly.
"Yeah?" I questioned.
" Your grandpa loved to hear you sing. In fact he loved everything you did. He would want you to go tomorrow."
"Thanks, Grandma," I said as my eyes filled with tears. " I know he loved what we did but it won’t be right."
"Sing for your grandpa and it will be right because he will be there," said my grandma.
After thinking for a little bit, I made my decision. I would go to State Contest.
The next day I traveled to Columbus with the choir. We sang our hearts out and earned a superior rating. The first person I called was my grandma. If it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t have gone or sung for Grandpa.
Because of that day, I will always sing for Grandpa. He will be there for me every time and he is my biggest fan.
We love you and miss you,
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