So summer is officially over for the Schweers family. He had a good run but school is not in full swing and lifes pace has picked up once again.
We started off the month with a short little trip to the Tuttle Ranch and hung out some with the Whites. Poppa had some back to school stuff going on early in the month and everything seemed like a normal time. Most of you have heard the news about my father’s passing. I know it has caught everybody my surprise as he was still in very good shape and eating well. We made the trip as soon as possible to be with family to comfort each other and help with details. Although it was nice to see family, the circumstances were not how we wanted to be reunited. We had a very nice celebration of Dad’s life at a ceremony overlooking the ocean and then spread his ashes later in the ocean. It has been a very surreal experience and my heart aches most of all for mother who lost her best friend. Please continue to pray for our family as we deal with the loss of our father. Thank you for the many cards and prayers that have come our way from friends and family.
Below is an excerpt from my eulogy to my father:
Since I grew up not really knowing my grandparents, one of my first thoughts upon hearing about my father’s passing was about my kids and the loss of their Opa. They are too young to remember him, especially my new 3 month old boy. So Baby Beck…Eisley…..This letter is just to let you know about your Opa since you never got a chance to know him so here it goes.
Dear Eisley and Baby Beck,
Your Opa was a quiet guy. But guess what? Silence really is golden. He understood the significance of having two ears and one mouth. He did like to listen more than he talked………..you’ll probably wish more people were like that as you get older. I’ll tell you what though, you sure do listen up and soak in their words more when somebody like that does share their advice or thoughts.
Even though he was quiet, he was still very loving and confirming as a father and we all felt his love daily. Your Opa was a physically affectionate man. He would greet you with a hug and knew the trick to get each of his kids to sleep even if he did have to rub my ear for 10 minutes. He loved his wife, my mom, with his entire heart and it was obvious to all around how much they were and are in love. They taught us how the husband wife relationship can go to an entirely new level as he was a great leader servant around the house.
Opa would have loved to come cheer you on in whatever sport you might participate in. There were many of my soccer games where mom and dad are in the stands giving the ref’s lots of shtick………respectfully of course!! Dad helped coach whatever team any of us were playing on. I remember being taught to play racquetball, ping pong and tennis and countless other games by both mom and dad. We also were forced into enjoying a certain team from the University of Nebraska where they all yell GO BIG RED!! He enjoyed the competition of playing sports but never went over board and was never a jerk about it with us or with his friends. I remember a special bang board he put up for me that I could kick that soccer ball against….maybe he was just trying save his sanity, or his house but I know it was an act of love.
I have to warn you baby Beck and Eisley…….since your Opa was from Nebraska, a lot of his humor was a bit corny……..get it?? . He had a dry and a subtle sense of humor and liked plays on words. If you were at an event and the MC asked for a round of applause…………anybody here know what you would get? Yep. And, if they asked for a Big hand for somebody……….do you wanna guess what he would do? I know I find myself doing some of the same things. Scary!! He also would make up countless acronyms and was always able to find humor in any situation which is a great gift.
His humor seemed to even transcend into his wardrobe. We were looking at some of his pictures and his closet , which by the way spans several decades, and had to laugh at some of the combinations that he came up with. His NPR friends at Car Talk would describe him as NOT being a slave to fashion. He was not afraid to don all things pink as well as pants and shirts that run the color spectrum.
Eisley, Beck, your Opa would have loved to take you camping. He enjoyed the outdoors a great deal. The mountain trails called his name all the time. Opa would always come back with several rocks of interest from any walk…..many of which are still around the house in boxes. If a stream might have the smallest ability to sustain life, he would be up for trying to fish it. His love of nature would surely have rubbed off on you, like I know it did on all his kids.
There are countless other things I can tell you about guys, but I know that the one he would want you to embrace the most is his faith. Opa loved the Lord. He enjoyed and embraced the challenge of living for God. Opa made sure we were in church growing up and that lead to my decision to ask Jesus into my life. What a great life it is when you can walk hand in hand with a living God.
Well kids, I hope you have a little bit better understanding of you Opa……but now that I think about it Beck and Eisley, I said this letter was to let you know about your Opa since you are so young but I am pretty sure that a lot of these same things I have just told you about, you will see in me. So I guess you will get a chance to know your Opa after all!
I LOVE YOU DAD!!
