So, I decided to honor him in the best way I know how. These are just a few things I learned from my papu.
Always tell stories
I truly believe I inherited my love for storytelling from my papu. He always lived to tell a good story when our entire family was together. Not only did he love the attention, he loved the journey of a story. I could see it in his face when he was telling it. His eyes would light up, and his hands would wave around once he got really into it. I lived to watch him talk and appreciated a real value for history through him, and learned about my Greek lineage because of him. Our family has an unique personality, and my papu was the heart and soul of it.
Love, love, love
Although he didn't always show it to our whole family, it was clear who he loved. He admired my yaya unconditionally. Whenever our family would be all together, it definitely got loud. In the middle of it all, he would stop, look at her, and say, "my koukla," which in Greek means, "my doll" or "my gorgeous." Then, like clockwork, my yaya would give him a quick smile, then immediately yell at him to stop it in Greek and life would go back to being too loud. I caught these moments several times in my childhood, and I don't think I ever truly appreciated them until now. When you're young, you only see love in others, because you haven't experienced it yourself. Being in my mid-20's, I've experienced versions of love and now truly understand how much he loved her. I hope to one day have someone look at me like that and call me gorgeous, even when I'm in my 70's.
My papu also loved his children, and grandchildren, fiercely. My relationship with him may have been later in his life, but he was one of my favorite people because I never wondered if he loved me. I just knew. He showed me every time he got worked up reading a story I wrote, or when he would tell me all about growing up in Hell's Kitchen while he cooked me orzo and lamb.
Live with passion
Every Christmas, papu never asked for anything from any of his grandchildren, just to see them and talk to them. Papu always had a passion for writing himself, so when it came to me, he would ask me to print out everything I wrote that year and put it together as a book so he could read it. He taught me to never give up on my passion for writing, and always made me feel like I was working towards something. Like I mentioned in my previous post about my New Year's goals, it's because of this support from him that I'm planning to write a children's book in his honor. I have big plans, papu. I wish you were here to see them, and to read what I've written.
Stay young at heart
"Don't you know that it's worth every treasure on earth, to be young at heart." Papu always immortalized Frank Sinatra, and "Young At Heart" will always be my go-to song when I want to think of him. While he could be a very serious man, I got the rare treat of seeing his silly side. I will treasure those memories forever, and it will constantly remind me to stay young at heart. Being serious has its time and place, but if you don't stop and let the nonsense in, you aren't truly appreciating life. That's what I learned from my papu, take it or leave it.
Like in most Greek families, our papu was a gigantic part of the family. So losing him was devastating, but we hold onto our moments with him and he taught every person in my family a different lesson that will guide them for years to come.
Do you have a grandparent who taught you some great lessons in life? I want to hear about it! Share your story in the comments.
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