Valentine's Day candy

One of the things I remember best about my Grandfather (who died when I was eight) was the heart-shaped boxes of chocolates he would buy every Valentine's Day for my mother and me. They were enormous ... especially to a 6 year old. They were probably only about 2 or 3 pounds, but I truly believed there were 10 full pounds in that box. I can still remember how excited I was to receive that much candy all at once. To me, it was even better than Halloween. The feeling of holding this big, red box and knowing that even though there was no way my mom would let me eat all of it, it was still all mine, and that my Grandfather gave it to me.

Or the parfaits he used to get me when we would pick up "Kentucky Fried Chicken" for lunch. They were horrible, but I loved them, and that's all that mattered to him.

Or the train ornament that he gave me for Christmas one year. It's supposed to look like it's been made of gumdrops, peppermints, etc. Even after all these years, it's still the first ornament to go on the tree every Christmas.

But the thing I remember best about him was seeing him standing at the edge of the grassy field that separated the school yard from the street that led to my house. Every once in a while, after the elementary school bell rang and I headed out the door with my friends, I would see my Grandpa waiting for me at the edge of the field to walk me home. I would practically drop everything and run as fast as I could to hug him as hard as I could. He was such a genuinely kind man. I knew he adored me ... it was such an amazing feeling knowing deep down inside that this grownup man thought that I, a little, big-talking girl, hung the moon. I didn't know that feeling again until I met my husband. It's so important for everyone, but especially a child, to feel that special. And I thank God I experienced it from my Grandpa K. I miss him terribly. I know he would have adored my children as much as he adored my mom and me ... and I believe he would have approved of my husband ... another man who thinks that I, still a big-talking girl, hung the moon.