It's a unique story, I think...
My grandparents met as young missionaries, both serving in Canada, in 1937. After their missions had been completed (my grandpa's a year before my grandma's), they spent only two weeks together before my grandmother wrote in her journal, "Went to assembly with Arvid and then to his place for lunch. Love him, and he loves me. I'll be Mrs. Seth Arvid Dodge someday."
She nicknamed him 'Smiler' in the mission field when her first landlady had said he was the best smiler of all the missionaries. . . and the nickname stuck with him through the end of his life.
His funeral was both beautiful and inspiring for me. Full of hope, rest and peace. Everyone who attended wore a 'smiler' pin, made by my cousin Heather, to honor his life, his perspective on life, and to help us remember that this was a happy time for him.
I have a lot of pictures of people that most of you don't know, and I won't post them here...but I'll break that rule with the picture above. The two older people above are my grandpa's brother and sister - delightful people who are easy to talk to and who remind me a lot of my grandpa. Look at her smile. :)
Five of grandpa's six sons (the other one had been there earlier in the evening). It was so touching for me to see just how much respect flows in this family. Over the course of one weekend, I gained a greater knowledge for where I came from as our focus was turned to my dad's family. My grandpa, with his eternal companion, raised a wonderful family.No wonder my dad is such a great guy...
Very tender Lindsay, what wonderful lives to celebrate and honor. Makes me miss my sweet Grandpa too, the only one I ever knew . . . glad you were able to celebrate his life and legacy.
ReplyDeleteOh, and is it just me, or does Miles have a bit of your Granpa in him? ;)
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful pictures! Aren't great men enough to make a lump jump into your throat? One question though, why didn't he go by Seth instead of Arvid?
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet idea to wear smiley face pins. So sorry for your loss. Glad you were able to be with your family and appreciate your grandpa's legacy.
ReplyDeleteA wonderful, thoughtful post. Love the smiley face pins. Thoughts and prayers with you.
ReplyDeleteWhat amazing pictures Linds. As always you have an eye for photography. I'm glad that I was able to see you at the viewing. I felt bad I couldn't make it to the funeral. It was so neat to see all the pictures of your Grandpa and Grandma together. You can just tell how much they really loved one another. I hope I can be like that too. I'm so happy you were able to be there with your family.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it wonderful when funerals can be so full of inspiration and rejoicing? Your pictures captured such wonderful feelings of love and honor for your Grandpa.
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