As I develop chapters for a book on connecting with people who have passed to the other side, I certainly want to share memories of my father’s father, Grandpa John Regard.
Here’s a start for Grandpa’s chapter:
When I got home from officiating a soccer match today, I needed to shower. I had slathered on sun screen before the match and was sweaty, too. What I did, however, was not shower. Instead, I got out of my referee uniform and donned a ratty, sleeveless t-shirt with my uniform shorts. I was comfortable to watch the baseball game and snack. Yes, I was hungry.
The game started at 1:00 p.m. but I had left the house a few minutes before noon. I’d eaten a large breakfast after mowing the lawn an hour or two before.
As I pondered why I didn’t jump in the shower right away, I recalled my paternal grandfather. John Regard Misfeldt rarely dressed up, except for going to church with my grandmother. Grandpa John loved to wear comfortable clothes. I share that trait with him. 
I think my grandfather was a laid-back man. He worked hard on the family farm; there was always some task to be done. He would rather tackle a chore than do nothing. His comfortable clothes might consist of bib overalls, mended and washed so often they were soft and felt better to wear than a new pair, without doubt.
Grandma Mabel made an excellent farmer’s wife. She worked as hard as grandpa, doing laundry on Monday, mending on another day, and cooking over a wood-burning stove every day for several meals.
I was only 10 years old when my grandfather passed away at the age of 81 (January 26th birth to October 31st death). I remember sitting with him in the front yard of his home when he and grandma moved into town. They had sold their Breezy Hill Farm, so he could retire. He loved to sit in an Adirondack chair and I vividly recall the bird he drew on the arm with a pencil. It was like what Audubon would paint, detailed with feathers, beak, wings, and legs; yet it was merely doodling.
Grandpa John is someone I would love to connect with on the other side.
