EPTI wish I could give a detailed life story that the magnitude of someone like my grandfather would deserve but to be honest I just had tidbits here and there so I guess I can try a tl;dr version.
He grew up in an abusive household, as soon as he was old enough he joined the Army to get away from all of that, specifically the Army Airborne which involved jumping out of planes for a living and probably various other bad-ass things.
He was on the Enewetak Atoll in 1956. Ok, so what's Enewetak Atoll? It's place where they did various testing for nuclear weapons and hydrogen bombs during the 50s. On that occasion in 1956/1957, during what was called Operation Redwing, he witnessed these tests, remarking that you had to put your backs against it since it would damage your vision if you looked at. I remember him making a creepy remark about the fact that he looked down and could see the bones in his arms from the flash of it.
Of course being in the Army he was naturally sent to Vietnam when war broke out over there. Details are somewhat fuzzy because he never directly talked about what happened or what he saw over there. I know from pictures he was a mechanic for at least some of the time, and he was there during the Tet Offensive (he did 2 tours there). I never heard anything about him being a war hero or anything Hollywood like that. He just got caught up something horrible that happened over there. Details are fuzzy like I said, mostly based on some old photos he had posted on his facebook with some tidbits of information. He never really talked about what happened over there and I never pushed for it despite wanting to know.
This may come off as sounding cold, but I honestly expected him to pass away sooner. My grandmother passed away almost a year ago and it was tough for me because it was so unexpected. I didn't understand as my grandpa was the one with all the health problems. He was the one with his back in pieces from jumping out of planes for a living, he was the one who survived a previous heart attack and stroke, he was the one who survived a bout with cancer. By all accounts, saying my grandfather had cheated death in the past would be an understatement. Looking back, I think it just speaks volumes of his tenacity and strength. He may not have been tough physically in his later years, but he was still strong mentally, even after going through all of this and later losing his wife of 50 years. If I somehow have a fraction of his strength, then I feel confident I can handle anything life will throw at me.
The last time I visited him was with my mom and my sister almost 2 months ago. He was barely able to move around the house with a walker and my aunt basically took on the role of caretaker to watch over him since he needed 24 hour supervision practically. That's another thing I have to respect about him. He never wanted/asked for help even in that physical state he was in. It could have been so easy for him to say he want's a nurse to come to the house to help him or to go to a nursing home but he never did. I guess you could call it being stubborn. Even I questioned it when I saw him last.
A week or so later it was my birthday and my mom took me to a Vietnamese place in the city to have Pho for lunch. On the way back my grandpa called to wish me a happy birthday and we exchanged the usual courtesies. This was the last conversation I would have with him.
Right now though it's hard to feel sad honestly. I am going to miss him for sure but I have such good memories of him. I am staying home to watch over the house and my parents pets. Some may call this cold but being around other people, even family, is uncomfortable to me during a time like this. People grieve in different ways and I prefer to do it alone in this case. I don't even have to mourn really. He lived a long life, and after living with years of horrible physical pain it's almost a relief. He can finally be at peace now. For better or for worse he lived life on his own terms, and to me that is something to celebrate and remember, not mourn.
Been up all day and it's almost 3 AM here. This is kind of a mess but I just had to get my thoughts down somewhere. Been listening to a Ray Charles greatest hits video on youtube. He loved Ray Charles and a bunch of other music from the 40s/50s era. Had good music taste as well.
Even though now both my grandparents are now gone, they will live on forever in my heart and my memories. In that way, they are still very much alive.
Lastly, posting some pictures.
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When he was in the Army Airborne, I assume before a jump given the photo. Unsure when it was taken.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/h176OKR.jpg)
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Vietnam. He used to be a mechanic and fixed up jeeps, but also ambulances as you can tell. Note the Vietnamese lettering on it.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/iBa9gSl.jpg)
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Again, no idea when this was taken. Sometime when he was in the Army though.![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/14gioPX.jpg)
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I have many photos of my grandparents but I always liked this one. This was taken on a riverboat in Tennessee I believe.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/OTGcS5q.jpg)
