Goodbye, dear Grandpa

Growing up we always loved when Grandpa and Grandma would come over for dinner. Sometimes we (and by we I mean my younger siblings) would try to block their way to the door after their visit because we didn’t want them to leave. I think that’s how many of us felt over the past few weeks. We weren’t ready for Grandpa to go. I don’t think we ever could be.

I remember how excited I was putting on my shoes in the back of our pickup camper as we neared Grandpa and Grandma's (Harry and Colleen Carson's) farmhouse after a long trip. It was one of the great happinesses of my childhood that my parents chose to move only 5 miles from Grandma and Grandpa's house. Our Grandparents were always there to make our birthdays, Thanksgivings, and New Years Eves a little more special. When we got a little older we had a lot of fun going to train shows with them. Papa and Grandpa took us on a bike ride on Highway 20 before the segment of highway near our home opened, which will always be one of our claims to fame. 

 

My siblings and I loved it when Grandpa let us ride in, or even better yet, drive his golf cart around the farm to feed the squirrels. It was super fun to corn hunt with him in the fields, and then come inside to Grandma’s delicious chili, good conversation, the nightly news in the cozy room with both Grandparents on their recliners, and plenty of wonderful stories.

Grandpa was a problem solver who always worked hard to make improvements and better everything he touched. His home, his beautiful lawn, and dozens of John Deere 2 cylinder tractors are a testament to that, and so is the Carson family, which I believe it’s fair to say, he and Grandma were very instrumental in building from the ground up. 

There’s a reason chicken was never on the menu at family dinners. It was the only meat Grandpa’s family could afford when he was growing up. The previous generation of Carsons had lost the family farm, and Grandpa’s father left Grandpa, his mother and his younger siblings to fend for themselves. Grandpa had to grow up fast. He did. And he built a great career at John Deere. 

Grandpa and Grandma were high school sweethearts, and with 70 years of marriage (plus four children and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren) before Grandma passed away, they set an example of an enduring love that never fades. 

One fun story I heard about Grandpa’s problem-solving abilities is about when Grandpa and Grandma got one of their first apartments. One day a mouse scurried by while they were eating dinner, and Grandpa threw his pocket knife and nailed it. I think he was just as shocked as Grandma. Another time he was so tired of his car not starting on cold winter days that he went to a car dealership on a -30 degree day and told the salesman he’d take the first car that would start. He didn’t have any more trouble getting to work on cold mornings after that!

Grandpa fought to defend our country. He worked hard to build the Carson family up again. And he had a strong faith. I am sure that the God who saw him through that frozen valley of the shadow of death at the Chosin Reservoir in Korea was with him through his final hours in Aplington, Iowa.

I’m sure that as much as he loved life, Grandpa is glad to be home with Grandma. As much as we wanted to keep Grandpa and Grandma with us, we couldn’t. They had to go home. We miss them. But we always knew as children—and still know today—that we’ll see them again. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die; do you believe this?”  I believe; Grandpa did too.

Until then, I won’t forget the example he set. In life, I hope to be like Grandpa in many ways. I know I’m not perfect. I know I’ve made mistakes. I’m sure Grandpa did too, although he definitely seemed like the perfect Grandpa to me. But I pray that God will give me (and you),the strength to, like Grandpa, be faithful, reliable, and full of love, the willingness to put in the work to better the lives of our families and all around us, and the courage to know, as Grandpa did even in his darkest hour in Korea, that the Lord is our Shepherd. Even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we should fear no evil; Jesus is with us.

Grandpa's obituary: https://www.lockefuneralservices.com/obituaries/8134/harry-carson