Papa Cook

Loss. Something so earth shattering and heart breaking. Something every single individual will go through in their lives, some more than others. Yesterday morning at 4:08 am I had this feeling of loss. I had that void in my heart that empty hole that told me I had lost someone, it was immediate. I have felt loss in many senses. I've lost friends that chose to move on. I've lost boyfriends that didn't seem to be the one. I've lost keys, and chargers, and shoes, and shirts and all the in-between. However, it had been a long time since I felt loss in which death was the case.
Dwight R. Cook is the kind of grandpa that was always there. He watched you and watched over you all at the same time and even when you didn't think he was listening.. he was. He had an opinion about everything but was very sparse about what he actually shared but when he did it was all ears. Towards the end of his time he didn't hold back on what he shared and it was such a beautiful thing to be around and to hear about when I wasn't there.
He lived a very great life. He played for the New York Giants and the Cardinals, he was a State Patrol Officer for twenty-two years, he was married for close to fifty-two years to a woman that would do anything for him, he had two amazing kids that grew to be amazing parents to their kids, and he was an awfully good father, grandpa, brother, and husband.
No holiday will be the same without him. His recliner that sits in the living room facing the TV just right will never be the same. His end chair at the dinner table during family dinners won't ever be the same. The house, the deck, the kitchen, the computer room, his room. None will ever be the same. As devastating and hard as it is I will never be able to thank God or him enough for waiting to let go until I was there. He wasn't in any pain, he wasn't scared and he knew it was his time. We are so lucky to have had those precious moments in the few days prior to his death where he was coherent enough to let us know how grateful he was for all the things in his life and all his future wishes. He left a huge impact on all of our lives and he will forever be remembered. I hope that us grandkids can live up to his expectations and goals in time.