Memorial Day

I would have written this post yesterday, but we were in Houston over the weekend and didn't get back until late last night.

My grandfather had surgery for his throat cancer which he came through amazingly well, telling the nurses a short time after the anesthesia wore off that "getting old ain't for sissies."

He had his surgery at the VA hospital in Houston which is pretty magnificent. Grandpa is a veteran of WWII, although not a terribly heroic one. Oh my god. My grandfather is Harry Flashman. Kind of. I'm pretty sure he never raped anyone. Pretty sure. Like 85%.

We spent Memorial Day at my parent's house. It's only a few minutes from the cemetary where Charles is buried, so Jethro and I went to pay our respects. So had many others. We ran into the parents of one of our friends. He was one of Charles' roommates in college and Charles was very close to that whole family. They said their son was having a very hard time with it and couldn't visit the cemetary or even talk about him. I know how he feels. He may never visit the cemetary. It was good for Jethro and me to visit, but I don't think I could have ever gone without Jethro.

I know Charles' girlfriend has been many times. She always leaves a message in the stones that cover the ground. It's really heartbreaking, but she has been a faithful comfort to his family and I really love her for that.