This is a poem that I wrote back in July 2015, about my grandfather, Jeepy, after he died. I read it at his memorial service. His caretaker woke me up that morning telling me he had died in his sleep and I needed to get across the street because I had to sign some papers that the cops had since he was on medications for his Parkinson’s and the cops wanted to make sure he didn’t get an overdose. My parents were on a trip west and couldn’t be reached at the time to let them know he had passed. They were out of cell range. (My grandmother couldn’t sign them because she has Alzheimer’s). So I signed them. My world went crashing down around me that morning.

Memories- To Jeepy:

You were known to your grandkids as “Jeepy” because of the letters g.p., since you didn’t want to be called grandpa,

You built playgrounds of cement blocks, bricks, and wood,

You played horsey with us,

You got fed raisins and played with us in our kiddie pool,

You were a grandfather who love to play with his grandkids,

We worked crossword puzzles and jigsaw puzzles with you,

Funny pictures of us in your clothes were taken with you,

You drew pictures with us and let us sit on your shoulders,

You were the best grandfather any grandkid could ask for,

And you will always be remembered,

And you will always be missed.

I love you, Jeepy.

The picture on the left is of my grandfather, Jeepy, as he was known to his grandkids making a playground for me and my sister, who is “helping” him. And that’s our dog Kia in the background.

On the right is a picture of me with my grandfather riding on his shoulders, which I remember doing a lot when I was that age.