On Sunday March 25th we said goodbye to our dear sweet Grandpa Gibbons. We were in the country for Nathan Eppich's homecoming and decided to stop by Grandpa's house. About 5mins before we got there Daren called and said the situation wasn't good. We were shocked. Knew he wasn't doing well, but he hasn't been for about 3 months now. We walked in and I was shocked at the difference in our sweet Grandpa. Luckily, he wasn't holding on that day and within 3hours left us to be reunited with many loved ones in heaven. I can't imagine how great the reunion with him and Necia was. They were married 45 (ish) years before she passed of cancer in 1990. For many years now, his body has been a hold back for him. In his mind he was still ready to jump on the swather and get things done, but many times his body proved he wasn't able to. Two summers ago, courtney, derek, brock and I were swimming and grandpa and melba all the sudden come out with their suits on. It was great! But Grandpa thought he was young again and headed off by himself to the deep end. He instantly sunk and realized his muscles were gone. It was really sad to watch. For all these reasons, it was such a sweet moment to say goodbye to this great man. I remember when we brought Wyatt down to see him for the first time, his eyes got big and you could see the pride in them. He told us Wyatt is the first (and only still) great-grandchild to carry on the Gibbons name. The joy in his eyes was unforgettable. He was a great woodworker, which shows where brock got his love of that from. As we buried him in Kennewick, at the same place Grandma Eppich is buried, I sat by Grandma's grave for a while. It's so hard to keep their memory alive. I feel like Grandma was just here, yet I can hardly picture her face, remember her smell, or feel the tickle on my cheek from her fingers. But I realized it isn't the exact memories that make these people great, it's who they were and how they lived their lives that inspires me to be better. To push harder, to be kind, loving, generous and obedient like they were. Most of all, I am grateful for the enhanced testimony of Eternal Families during these emotional goodbyes. But as we sang at his funeral, Families Can be Together Forever!
I can't get this picture to rotate! such a great picture though.
The Brothers
All the girls
Melba was "there" at moments. She has her moments when we think she realizes what was going on, but most of the time she just looked sad/confused. While all the grandkids sang Families Can be Together Forever at the funeral services, she started crying really hard in the middle, that did it for all us girls singing. That was hard to see!
Uncle Ray!! We love him. Grandpa's brother from cashe valley. In same ward as tony bodily, brock's mission buddy.
The whole family
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