On this Father's day...

Happy Father's Day, to my Dad! :) by sashanaomi on Polyvore.com

Today is a very bittersweet day for my family, especially my dad. Today thirteen years ago, on June 20, 1997, my dad's own dad passed away. Even after so much time, and even though I was only eight years old when my grandpa "papaw" died, I can still remember his hearty laugh, and the way it sounded like he was coughing his stomach out. I remember his drivenness, especially the way he reacted when my sister was bit on the nose by his beloved dog. 


He used to carry around the most enormous coffee thermos I've ever seen. I wanted to carry around a thermos that big because my papaw was "all grown up" and "really cool" and I wanted to be a cool grown-up like him. Many of my memories are of sitting on the couch watching some boring grandpa channel in our Darlington home, waiting for him to fall asleep so I could turn the channel to cartoons (and let me tell you, it didn't take long before he was out, and I had to turn the volume up on the television to overcome the sound of his awfully loud snores). 


I remember the way he smelled, like hard work and sweat and musky grandpa cologne that seemingly all grandpas wear. I can still feel his grainy, prickly last kiss on my cheek when we both knew it was goodbye.   


Since I can't be there today, I thought I would make this little piece to remind my dad that his son Cody and I love him and think about him on this very difficult day.


Happy Father's Day!