Passing of an Icon

 The Passing of an Icon

November 5, 2022

"Only the rocks live forever".  As relatives in life go....well, for that matter, also as far as fellow travelers on life's road with whom we share a few passing seconds........ or a lifetime....  Uncle Paul was as "rock".  He always had that "Uncle Paul smile" on his face, and always a positive attitude.  How many times have I sat at the kitchen table in the old farmhouse down at the Groner farmplace, sharing a cup of coffee and possibly something sweet (from his smorgasbord of sweets on the table, which Uncle Paul always loved and always filled the kitchen table top), where his smile and happy attitude slowed life down,which allowed me to truly enjoy the moment for just a bit. 

Digging just a bit deeper into my cluttered box of memories in my mind, my mind's eye can see Uncle Hubert, Grandma Clare, and even Grandpa Paul, with those same smiles and happy attitude. I can see Grandpa drinking coffee (always instant coffee in the Groner house) from a saucer, which he used when the cup was fresh and too hot to drink direct from the cup.  And grandma's cookies....sugar cookies as I recall...perhaps that is were Uncle Paul got his love of sweets... Grandma always had a plate of them on the table at lunchtime.  Lunchtime was not what we now eat at noon...it was a small meal between breakfast and noon dinner, and again between dinner and evening supper.  Back then we called dinner "dinner" and supper "supper".  None of this woke communist stuff of calling dinner "lunch" and supper "dinner".  But I digress........

Sitting here reflecting on the life of Uncle Paul a day after his passing, there are a million and one good memories where  I can recall him with his iconic smile and happy attitude.  People naturally are attracted to generally happy people, and Uncle Paul attracted more than his share.  If you met him once, he was your friend for life.  If each of us, who was infected with his smile and attitude, could infect just 10 others, when we leave this world as he just did, we, like him, would be leaving it a much, much better place.  

One of my favorite lines from a classic movie "Good Old Boys" has the woman friend of Tommy Lee Jones saying "If wealth were measured in friends, you would be the wealthiest person in the whole world", to which Tommy replies "It is, and I am".  Uncle Paul lived...... and died, a rich, rich man.

I am creating this blog page to have a place to share images of happy times, not just centered around the Groner family, but extended just a bit beyond that to include the Berger community and beyond, that somehow touched the Groner family.  Relatives and friends alike.  I guess as we get old, we gravitate back to memories of our youth.  Feel free to share your own memories  here,  if for no other reason, to preserve them for yourself.  If you have photos to share, that is even better.  Info or photos, etc, for sharing can be sent to me via the link on the right  sidebar, and you can also comment on any blog post.

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Here are a few more photos (Thanks to Elise Meyer)