I'm Just Like My Grandfather

Introduction

This essay was written by me, Brandon Nolet, in the context that my grandfather passed away years ago and I want to remember him a little more.

Kleenex Boxes

When I was little, there were a few things that my grandfather would complain about that I never really understood until I started doing these things myself. One of these things would be him complaining about the lack of a plethora of boxes of facial tissue around the house.

With him, if there wasn’t a kleenex box in every room, he would complain about it. “When you’re done with the kleenex box, put another one in it’s place! It takes two seconds and it’s convenient for everyone.” This was at a time where there was literally two kleenex boxes in the living room, one at either end of the room.

It wasn’t until I had my own place that I started to do this myself. It was a year into where I live at the time of writing and I was saying something pretty similar to what my grandfather said. I was saying this very thing to my romantic partner and I stopped mid-sentence when I realized what was going on. I stopped complaining and started explanining how this similarity had just dawned on me.

As I sit at my computer, I can see three kleenex boxes from my chair.

Where Things Go

Another thing that my grandfather would complain incessantly about was where to put things in the fridge. Every single thing in the fridge had its own place and it absolutely had to go there. I would take the mayonnaise from the top shelf and then when I would put it back, I would be putting more than just the mayonnaise back. I’d happened to put the relish on the top shelf and the mayonnaise on the middle shelf.

This was no bueno in his eyes. Everything had to go back where I found it. He would come to me, asking where the mayonnaise is after having looked in the fridge for a half second. When I would point out that the mayonnaise should be going on the top shelf. It has to go on the top shelf. I would retort that if he would just ‘open his eyes’ he might find the mayonnaise.

I can hear his voice in my head as I write this. It’s a little comical considering the context.

The other day, I was nagging my partner that they didn’t put the mayonnaise back in the shelf on the door. Again, I had stopped mid-sentence. This time I completed what I was saying but then I went on and explained that that’s a similarity that my grandfather and I have.

Many More (Conclusion)

I’m good at math, I like to give more than I take, but I won’t go on about the positive qualities because I don’t want to seem narcissistic (although this blog is probably a form of narcissism, right?).

My grandfather and I were pretty close and I don’t think it’s any surprise that we turned out to be so alike even though at the moment we’re farther apart than we could, at least spiritually, be. I miss him a lot but I hope that even though we’re so similar, that I can build on those similarities and progress even farther than he hoped I would.