In Remembrance...
He was 92 when he died. Tall, huge feet, thick wavy hair, and smile lines deeper than dried mud. He left behind a legacy of 8 children and more grandkids and great kids than I care to count. He loved nothing more than to hear his family laugh. He adored polka music, baseball in his front yard and juicy fruit gum. He was my grandpa. He passed away on December 21, 2017.
His name was Richard Laverne Peterson.
This is in honor of him. I hope it brings comfort to those who grieve and a recognition of love to those who feel alone.
“It’s kind of a blessing knowing his ashes are in the box on the table ... and there’s room for me.”
“That’s why I question God - because other people’s babies lived, and why not mine? ”
“If I tell you that I try to recall all of the good things, that would be a lie because I don’t remember any bad parts. ”
“She was 46 when she took her life. When I hit 46, I decided my life was going to begin.”
“He always told me he didn’t think he’d live that long ... but he just enjoyed life, wasn’t afraid of it.”
“I cherish the 16 years we were together, I think it was a gift. I think that maybe I’ve learned a lot about love by loving her.”
“With suicide, it’s hard because of the pain that they leave behind ... I just have to remember to breath and realize that, you know, that was in the past and I have to live in today. ”
“And the guy said, ‘well, you know your grandma is a queen, right? So that makes you a princess.”
“People can’t be changed by anyone else. You can pray for them and you can give them the best advice you can. But when it comes down to it, you just gotta leave them with God.”
“But now that I feel like he is gone, it’s like, I get upset a lot easier now ... he was my best friend.”
“It sucked. It sucked. It still sucks. I think about her mom and her family and her brothers and her sister and that loss is gutting. ”
“No matter how long it was that you were gone, he was always happy to see you ... he enjoyed his children and enjoyed his grandkids. ”
