Happy 101st!

Today [March 19, 2009] would have been my grandfather's 101st birthday. I wasn't quite thirty when he passed away in February of 1994.

I always felt very close to my grandfather - not in a "confidante" sort of way, but in a comfortable sort of way. We spent a lot of time together when I was a child - baseball, swimming and fishing, jokes and games. When we both got older, I was very happy to do some things for him - chauffeuring mostly - because he had done so much for me.

He was very pleased when we told him we were moving to Hillsborough. Even though he had never heard of the place, he had a feeling he would like it.

He only made it out to Hillsborough twice. The first time, we took a drive out while our new house was still being built in early 1993. The second was a few months later, at our housewarming party.

Halfway through the party, I found Grandpa sitting alone on the couch in the living room, perfectly at ease. "I feel at home here", he said.

As I sit here sixteen years later, I know exactly what he meant. I feel at home here too.