On Saturday March 19th we said goodbye. Nat's dad lost his battle to kidney cancer that he fought for five months. He never once complained about being sick. He was a fighter!
He will be remembered for his many roles in life.......
A faithful husband for 45 years
A father
A grandfather
A dad, hunting buddy, and friend
A hard worker and a business man for 40+ years
This is one of Nat's many favorite memories with his dad on a two week backpacking trip in second grade.
There are many things that we will miss. This smile is one of the things I will miss the most. If I could describe him I would say he was a legendary teddy bear.
The smile on his face when my boys went running to him with open arms yelling "granddaddy!" was priceless. Both of my boys loved going to work with him and the farm. Nathaniel helped build bikes and Nolan liked riding in his big truck. He was a hero in my boys eyes.
Something else I will never forget is him sitting in this blue chair every year at Christmas in the living room just laughing when we could not figure out our clues to find our presents. He got everyone a present from him and when we opened it there was a clue hidden inside. Sometimes the first clue led to another clue that we had to decode and go on a hunt inside and sometimes outside to find the rest of our gift. He loved every minute of it and we did too!
I could not have asked for a better father in law. He touched so many lives and he definitely left an imprint on mine. We Miss you Big Nat!
He went into the hospital the day after we left for Korea. We didn't know until we touched down in Chicago coming home. He was one of Ella's biggest fans. When we told them we were going to adopt he said, " If that's what you feel like you need to do... then do it." The only smile we could get from him the last week was when I walked her into his hospital room each day. I am so glad we got her home and he was able to see her precious face. She had him from hello.
God's timing is truly amazing!
Another post that brought me to tears. I know that Nat will be missed by many many people. So glad he got to meet Ella.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful post for such a beautiful life.
ReplyDeleteWhat a special man! Sounds like he was an incredible person and touched many many lives. So sorry for your loss. Truly amazing....
ReplyDeleteBeautiful tribute to an amazing man...Big Nat was so loved by many & his life changed many many lives for the better...I will continue to lift the entire family up in prayer.
ReplyDeleteSuch a pretty post. I liked Big Nat alot and was blessed to have our paths cross. So glad I met you because of him as well. So tickled that he got to meet Ella before he left.
ReplyDeleteThat was such a loving tribute! I am so thankful he got to see beautiful Ella. I am praying for you all!
ReplyDeleteLove you!
Alyson
I love this post so much, Cindy. I think that this is truely a wonderful tribute to Big Nat, and how, [if any parent could wish for], we would all like to be remembered and loved by our children. The greatest treasures in our lives that we can leave the sweet ones we love, are memories:)
ReplyDelete