I just found out my Grandpa (Dad's dad) died this morning. He was with us at my Mom and Dad's house for Thanksgiving, looking old but pressing on. A few weeks ago his doctor said he is declining and wouldn't make it until next Christmas. Yesterday the doctor said he may not make it through the weekend. He barely made it to the next morning.
E.J. McCoy was a man of the town (Pontiac, IL), a friend to many, loving and generous, quick to locate the sweets, active and fun. I remember once he was telling a really dumb joke on the golf course (it was the 17th hole) and he was crying over how funny it was to him. He could barely finish the joke. I remember sleeping on the pull-out couch in his condo in Venice, Florida. He took us to the beach to fish with live shrimp and we watched him try to get the hook out of the mouth of a stingray he caught. I remember how Grandpa was stubborn and how he would win every argument, even after he lost. I remember how his eyes would light up when he would see our kids. And I remember how when we went to visit him over the Holidays his health was so poor that he could barely open his eyes to see our kids.
I could say so much more, but it's enough to say that I loved and will miss my Grandpa.