Remembering Bobby Holmes

Last Thursday, after a 3 1/2 year battle with cancer, my father-in-law passed away at home. At times like this, the phrase "absent from the body, present with the Lord" has more meaning than  you can imagine.  

We attended his funeral on Saturday, and it was a service that honored his life. Three pastors spoke of him as a man of faith, a man of family, and a man of joy. I am convinced that he lived as long as he did because of his joyous outlook on life.        

Since I started dating Jeff at the age of 18, Mr. Holmes has been part of my life for quite some time now. He has been a father figure when I needed one, and later on, a wonderful grandfather to my kids. He loved bragging about his grandchildren, and no children anywhere in the world were as smart or as pretty as his were.  And, he gave them the most important gift over the years -- his time and attention. I am so grateful for those memories.

He could be pretty cantankerous at times, espousing his philosophies on politics and the world in general. One of the last things he said to me was that he was worried about what Obama is doing to the world that his grandkids live in.  He was extremely opinionated on most subjects and didn't mind sharing. He loved talking to just about anyone, and I often thought a perfect job for him would have been a WalMart greeter.  In fact, we hated taking him to WalMart with us because he would stop at the entrance, shake hands with the greeter, and ask him about his grandkids.  (Of course they wouldn't be as clever and beautiful as his!)

This coming Father's Day the world will be missing a really great father and grandfather; however, our loss is heaven's gain.  And what a blessing to think of him whole, healthy and even more joyous than he was here on earth. I can only imagine...