Where has the summer gone? Remembering Papa...

Mr. Maestro went back to school this week. Where has this summer gone? It feels like just a couple of days ago we were getting ready to head to China - and now we're back and summer is nearly over! 

In theory, summer is supposed to be a time to sit back and relax for a while. That has not been the case for us this year! We returned from China on June 14th (Tuesday) and that weekend (after working Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday) we went to my hometown to visit with my grandparents - and specifically to say "good bye" to my Papa who had been battling Parkinson's Disease for the past 16 years (he bore it with such grace - we never heard him complain although it was obviously frustrating for him as his body and then mind slowy began to fade away). Saturday night the family gathered around his bedside and sang old church songs - one of his favorite things to do. By this point he wasn't able to open his eyes or respond to us verbally, but we saw his lips move with ours as we sang those old familiar words and he squeezed our hands to let us know he was there. Saying goodbye was one of the hardest things I have done - but I am so grateful that I was able to have that experience. As I left on Sunday afternoon to return back home I whispered in his ear one last time that I loved him dearly and that I expected him to save me a place at his workbench in his new barn up in Heaven.  I returned to work on Monday and Tuesday morning got the message that he was with Jesus. The visitation was on Wednesday June 22nd  and the funeral the next day. The service was very personal and sweet - as my Uncle was the minister who performed the ceremony. My brother and dad put together a slide show honoring Papa's life. Here is a link to the slide show, in case you'd like to see it: My Papa. In addition to being - quite literally - a rocket scientist, Papa was also an avid wood-worker {especially in his retirement years}. We gathered up examples of all the things he had made for us {children and grandchildren} and displayed those at the funeral and visitation - I wish I had a picture to show you of all of those things together, but I just wasn't thinking about taking pictures that whole weekend! The only downside to this display was the back-log of people it caused moving throught the visitation line - people just didn't want to stop looking at his creations! Sara {my sister-in-law} and I worked on a memory book for the guests at the visitation and funeral to sign. This way those in attendance could leave a fond memory or some kind words for the family instead of just signing their name. In the album, we also put a copy of the funeral sermon. Memi (my grandmother) was hesitant to include the slide show in the funeral or substitute a guest book with the memory album on account if things "not being done that way." But in the end she was thrilled with the result. The slideshow was poignant and sweet, and I personally witnessed Memi reading and re-reading the entire memory album every day after the funeral.

I have so many memories of spending time with Papa. My family lived on the same land as my grandparents growing up, and they had a hard time getting us to leave their house and barn!  Here are a couple of pictures of me and Papa that show what a patient guy he was:

 { As you can clearly see, I am posing with Papa AND an ear of corn.}

{there are no words to describe this shirt except the word that is embroidered on the front "COOL" }

I haven't really had to deal with death much in my lifetime, especially not the death of a family member that I was so close to, so this summer has been a bit tough. A friend recommended that I read the book "Heaven is for Real" - which I did. It's an easy read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I won't do a book review or anything, but I will say that it was a very healing book for me to read.

On a lighter note, we are headed with my fam to Savannah, GA tomorrow night for a long weekend-mini-vacay. I can NOT tell you how excited I am about this. It will be so nice to spend time {low-stress} together, eat amazing food, and enjoy a new vacation destination. And in true Clark family style, we will {of course} be taking a Segway tour of the city. Nice.