What do you say to a man who's accepted his fate?
That question kept circulating in my head as I wrestled with the reality that my father in-law was going to be making his transition a few days after his 63rd birthday. The end of a loved one’s story is something that no one wants to think that much about, but the thought is always there subconsciously. I couldn’t help but remember all the laughs over the years, the Wednesday nights at Lakewood Bowl ($1 game night), the lessons learned and the great person that he was to friends and family. And that’s when it hit me…
Rob G mattered to a lot of people.
In a world where so much emphasis is placed on one’s online presence, the genuineness of showing love to people beyond a glass screen is often lost. Pops didn’t have that problem. He cared for everyone and those who knew him, loved him. He wasn’t a stranger to anyone after he met them at least once.
The more I thought about our interactions, and the stories that others had about him, I slowly started to put together the words that needed to be said in my mind. I saw how his loved ones surrounded him during his final days. A life full of moments that will be shared for generations to come.
I told him that he was loved and that he mattered. I told him that his legacy and story will proceed him… that alone, is something a lot of us won’t be able to say when we’re gone.
When he passed, I brought my camera with me to the services, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it, but I did know that I wanted to have it just in case I saw another chapter of his story that could be documented and shared.
I’m glad that I didn’t leave it at home. With any good story, there’s an ending that leaves us fulfilled. The imagery that I did end up getting illustrates some of the feelings that he provided to us. The feeling of love, the feeling of joy or humor… the feeling of confidence. He will be missed, but hardly forgotten. We all have memories and stories that we can reference whenever we need a reminder…