Bye Grandpa, Bye

On the eighth of February two thousand eleven, my only living grandfather, the father of my father passed away at his home at around four o'clock in the evening. He was eighty five. At first, I didn't know how to react. It's surely not because this is the first death of a close relative since I've attended two close relatives funeral in a span of six months ago. I still can't understand why I didn't know how to react. It's maybe because it was the previous day I saw him alive and the next day his no more. If that's the reason, then I should be sad. But he was sick and bed-ridden for the past two to three weeks, and his dead maybe an answer to his prayers to a relief from the suffering. If that's the reason, then I should be grateful. Anyhow, I was sad and grateful at the same time. The last time I saw him alive was the day before he died. Before that, it was last Deepavali. Yea he was sick then, but still he was the very same old man I know. What ever problem he had with my dad or parents, he would never ever once show any grudge or dislike to me. He would treat me how he treated me twenty years ago. He would attend to me with a smile in his face. He once even scolded my brother for bullying me when I was little. Haha! Extra ang pow for me. He even made me some kind of device so that I could play firecrackers during Deepavali without getting myself hurt. He would talk to me in English even if its broken on when I was young cause I wasn't much of a Tamil speaker then. Even if he was never a saint or something like that, deep inside of me, I always liked him and will continue doing so. Maybe because of his will power, his ever so proud manner even when his not at his best, his jovial being, or his whiskey scent [=)]. I could still remember his tight grip on my hand the day before he died. Still I couldn't believe he dead. He was a strong man. No one can deny that. I don't know but one thing is for sure that I gonna miss him. Not a lot but a little cause it was his time to leave and missing someone too much after they left is no good for us and them. Bye tata (grandpa in tamil). Do rest in peace.