I Wish You Had Known Him!

Dearest Princess Caroline,
It is so hard for your Papaw to believe that you are now six months old!  I hope you know how much we all love you.  I know your Mommy and Daddy feel so blessed to have you as part of their family.  I also know that your big brothers love you...even when they lick you!  By the way, what's up with that?!?  And, of course, Mimi thinks you are the best little girl ever.  I hope you also know that Papaw would probably do anything you wanted him to!  However, there is someone I want to tell you about that you don't know...your Papaw G.C.

You see, Caroline, your Papaw G.C. died about six months before you were born.  He was your Mommy's Papaw and your Papaw's Daddy.  I know that sounds kind of confusing for a little girl, but it will not be long before you understand it.  In fact, I'll bet that Mark Garrett can tell you something about Papaw G.C.  I wanted to tell you somethings about your Papaw G.C.  First, he was a man who loved Jesus and he loved his family.  When I was little, I always knew he loved me very much.  The way I knew that was because he spent time teaching all the things that he thought I should know.  He taught me that Sundays were the days we spent worshiping God.  He taught me how to hunt and fish and how to work hard and enjoy it.  He also taught me that a man should love his family more than himself.  He taught me that having fun was important too!

When your Mommy was born, I got to see how he would do as her Papaw!  In my eyes, he had pretty big shoes to fill...those of my Papaw!  And as Mark Garrett would say, "My Papaw was amazing!"  When you are a little bigger, I will tell you about my Papaw!  I think your Mommy would tell you that Papaw G.C. was a pretty amazing Papaw for her and Uncle Mark.  If Papaw G.C. were here, I am sure he would tell you the "Tomato Rabbit Story!"  You'll have to hear that one from your Mommy!  He would tell you about growing up in a small town in Texas.  He might also tell you about a very cold place in another part of the world, called the Chosin Reservoir, a place where he served his country and didn't think he did anything special...but I did!  You see, Caroline not only was he my Daddy, he was my hero too!  And I really miss him a lot.  I would always call him and tell him about the things that your brothers were doing and saying and I would sure have called him to tell him about you.  When I told him about your brothers, he would always laugh and say, "Those little hammerheads!"  But, I know he would not call you a hammerhead!

I really wish you had known Papaw G.C.!  However, I know that one day in the future, you will get to meet him, just like I will see him again!  On that day, he will want to hear all about you and I am sure he will tell you the story of the "Tomato Rabbit!"  I love you Caroline!

Papaw