Here are the instructions:
1. Go to your my documents/my pictures
2. Go to your sixth file
3. Go to your sixth picture
4. Blog about it
5. Tag six peopleAnd here is the picture:
This is the gravestone of my great-uncle Alton Dahle and his wife Zelda. We visited it during a family reunion in Idaho last year (when I was 13 weeks pregnant...ugh, that trip wasn't exactly a good memory). They are buried right next to by Grandma and Grandpa Dahle, my mom's parents, who passed away when I was 2 and 6, respectively.
I don't have many memories of them--my grandparents or Uncle Alton and Aunt Zelda. What I do remember are little bits from summers spent in Fruitland, Idaho, playing in and around my grandpa's mobile home, which was just down the hill from Uncle Alton. Alton was my grandpa's older brother--I think Alton was the second oldest of 10 children, and Grandpa was 9th or something like that (Mom, please correct me if I'm wrong).I don't remember Grandma at all, but my mom tells me that she just loved her "only daughter's only daughter" (for those who don't know, my mom has four brothers and no sisters, and of course, Kirsti and Brianne weren't born until after Grandma had already passed away). And apparently I sat on her lap while she rolled around on her wheelchair. Sounds like fun. Grandpa had been sick for as long as I could remember. He had cancer of the--mouth? throat? I'm not sure which one exactly--and, because of that, his voice sounded a little strange. And he had an eyepatch, which made him look a little scary to me, a 4, 5, or 6-year-old. But I remember sitting on his lap occasionally, and I remember that he told cool stories. I really wish I could have known him better. Both he and Grandma died way too young, in my opinion, and I look forward to seeing them and getting to know them, be it when I die or when the Second Coming happens and they are resurrected. I've always loved Grandma's name, too. Her actual name was Wilma Jacqueline, but she went by Jackie. I've thought about naming my daughter that, if I ever have one. Maybe not the Wilma part, but Jacqueline. It's a beautiful name.
I remember Uncle Alton a little bit more, and I have vague memories of crossing the bridge over the creek that separated his field from my grandpa's mobile home property, hiking up the hill while trying to avoid the cowpies, and going on rides on Uncle Alton's riding lawn mower. It was awesome. I also remember losing the toenail on my left big toe because the board that kept the cows off the creek bridge dropped on my foot...yeah, that was painful. And I remember that Uncle Alton took me to my Grandpa's funeral--except we first went to the wrong place and didn't realize it until we looked in the casket. That was a little awkward. We eventually ended up at the right place, where I remember being surprised by how stiff Grandpa looked and how cold his skin felt (I think one of my brothers dared me to touch his forehead). I may have been confused as to why he wasn't wearing his eyepatch anymore, but my mind may have made that part up.
I don't think I've been to another funeral since then--or have I? The only person close to me that has passed away since then is my Grandma on my dad's side--I think--and that was just a month before I returned home from my mission, so I missed it. I hope this whole post doesn't come across as calloused or anything. I'm just trying to share my memories. It's been normal to me to grow up with only one grandma and grandpa, and I guess Joshua is doing the same, now that I think about it. Of course, Cody's grandma and grandpa are still here, and Joshua spends a couple of hours there every week while Cody is in class, but, sadly they may not be around much longer. That's why it's important to treasure every minute that we can. You never know when someone's time may come.
