Shaping A Man

Being a Texan is about the most definitive distinction for those who come from the big state. Being a rancher is a lifestyle of one who works the arid land of that great state. My husband is each of these. He grew up on 315 acres of Texas lush land in the rolling hills of Texas in a small town called Boerne (pronounced Bernie). Running amok with his four brothers and best friend, Puppy Dog, my husband turned into a man.

In addition to his parents my husband was under the tutelage of his four grandparents. You see he comes from a closely located and close knit family. His closest neighbor are his grandpa, his aunt, and his uncle. And just five miles or so into town is his Pawpa. It is his Pawpa and mom with whom he is sitting. And despite the millions of stories I could tell you about each of his grandparents - today I share a story about Pawpa.

In May of 1998 my husband came home from serving a two year mission for our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Eager to return to the land he was born to love, he decided to take a job working for his Pawpa for the summer. He was a local developer who owned a number of pieces of heavy equipment. During the long hours of working, interacting and negotiating with his Pawpa on the right way to do things, my husband often took the lessons of the man and contemplating them extracted those things which he thought would build him to be a better man. There are still times when I will come across him doing something and and he will gladly give the credit to his Pawpa's teachings.

Pawpa left this world on Friday, April 30th 2010. But he left a legacy behind him. Life springs forth still from him as I watch my husband teach our children those principles his Pawpa taught him. And luckily through our deep seated faith in the Atonement of the Savior of the World and Eternal Families, we approach this event not with sadness but a time of happy reflection to find that we are better people for having had him in our lives.