Sad day in the Sumner world. My "Grandpa" died peacefully in his sleep this morning at the age of 92. He lived a long, wonderful life. I refer to him as my "Grandpa" only because he wasn't my actual Grandpa...although he sort of was. It's confusing to me, still. Anyway, I always called him by his first name, as did all of my immediate family members:
FD.
Short for Floyd. He was always FD.
Long story, but, my father's actual father died before my sister and I were born. But for my two older brothers, he was their original Grandpa. Kelly and I obviously never knew him, but as time passed my Mamaw (Grandma) started dating FD after Kelly and I were born. They eventually married however, for whatever reason, it never caught on that we should refer to FD as our new Grandpa. Especially since my older brother's already experienced their real Grandpa. So it was weird. FD was FD. He wasn't anyone's stepfather, he wasn't called our Grandpa, and he never asked to be labeled as such either. FD was FD.
That's just the way it was. And it was perfect.
FD was a pretty great catch for my Mamaw. He was soft-hearted, soft-spoken, sweet, caring, gentle, always happy to see you kind of guy, who had a loveable southern accent and a fondness for gardening. He always had fresh, homegrown tomatoes sliced and ready whenever my family would come to visit for vacation or holidays. He also liked to have his first beer starting at noon, god love him. But he poured it into a glass, like the classy man that he was. He was also pretty adamant about serving fresh ham. He was big on getting ham from the deli before we arrived for a visit, and then made sure to tell us that there was thin-sliced, Virginia ham in the fridge at all times. Afterall, he got it especially for us. Anything that my siblings and I did made him laugh, too. He took such interest in us, I can just picture his response to seeing us or listening to us talk. He was such a gentle soul.
I'll never forget the way he said my name either..."Ryne"...and my sister "Kellay."
While he's gone, these memories are forever.
Rest in peace, Grandpa.
