Everyone Should Have A Grandparent Like Opa

**copied from my Facebook page, so if you read this there, it's the same. I'm feeling nostalgic today.

My grandfather's health has gone into decline in recent years and he doesn't always know who I am, anymore. In some ways, I am already mourning the absence of a person who was one of the largest presences in my life growing up despite the fact that he typically lived at least 2-3,000 miles away from wherever I did. Opa is just one of those people who is going to be in your life, in your business, whether you want him to or not. When he was healthy, he had a larger than life personality that you just couldn't ignore.
Some of my favorite memories:
1. His lifelong nickname for my sister and I involves a German swear word. The best part is that he would always say it with affection. It was like, "I love you, you little brats." Only a much stronger word than brats. I still can't get over how being cussed at became a positive thing. Opa was very upfront with people and quick to point out your mistakes, yet he was always good natured about my mistakes even when pointing them out to me and I actually learned to be more accepting of my imperfections because of it.
2. I don't really remember he and my grandmother having any major fights in front of me, but they used to bicker all the time and they were both so witty it was like watching a sitcom. Case in point, my friend and I were in the car with my grandparents when they were visiting me at college--they had the following argument:
Opa to Grandma: Speak up, Annie. I can't understand you.Grandma tries again.Opa: Annie, speak up. We can't hear you.Grandma calls Opa a not-so-nice word under her breath. I believe it was the son of, but I can't quite remember.Opa, to my friends and I: Did you hear that? Did you hear what your grandmother called me?Grandma: Oh, sure, you couldn't hear me before, but you heard THAT!!Opa: I always hear THAT!!
My friends and I couldn't contain our giggles the rest of the way to the restaurant.
3. When April and I became Mormon, Opa's prior experience with the religion involved next door neighbors, who he liked because they were really nice, but they had something like 7 children, including a pregnancy that had put the mother's health at risk. Having grown up in a European household, Opa did not agree with this. Opa was convinced that being Mormon meant we would grow up and become baby factories when we were married, so to prevent this, he would send me every overpopulation article or write up he could find trying to convince me to have what he considered a reasonable number of kids. A lot of times the articles would be related to China or India, since people haven't been concerned with overpopulation in this country for decades, but he would send them anyway. He would put post-its on them that said things like "Mormons have too many children!" This lasted for like 10-12 years, until my sister had the first great grandchild, then it stopped cold turkey. What can I say? He really likes babies!! To his credit, he would also send every positive article that came out in the So. Cal. area newspapers about Mormonism, as well.
4. Opa has one of the biggest "outgoing" genes out there. Having seen my mother and my sister in action, I know they inherited it from him. He is the type of person who can strike up a conversation with ANYONE, ANYWHERE. Trust me, if we were all waiting in line to get some terrible thing like a rectal exam from a doctor, my grandfather would have found a way to lighten the mood and make conversation. His whole personality is based on the assumption that all humans want interaction with other humans and for the most part, I think he is right.
5. Opa believed in SPOILING, SPOILING, SPOILING grandkids. He always griped that we weren't grateful enough and I think he was right, but it never stopped him. You got birthday/christmas presents EVERY YEAR, a phone call EVERY WEEK, constant letters. You got to stay with them and visit for as long as you wanted every summer. Opa was at every special occasion of my life, HS graduation, college grad, wedding, post baby visits. He had to travel at least 1000 miles to get to these events. I bet the amount of contact I've received from my grandparents throughout my life would number in the thousands and the amount I reciprocated was probably a tenth of what I got. It's a wonderful feeling to have that kind of unconditional love.
I love my grandfather and l loved my grandma and I am so awed by what a terrific team they were. They both touched people in their own way and the world is definitely a better place for them having lived in it.