My grandfather passed away last week.

His passing was not entirely unexpected, but still, losing a family member always comes as a blow. I had so much respect for my grandfather. He was married to my grandmother for 71 years. He was a preacher, and honestly, my expectations for preachers were set unrealistically high because of him. If he believed in something, he lived it in his every day life. He always told the truth, even when it was difficult. I value resolve, determination, and honesty so highly because of him.

He was also a doctor of psychology, and he spent his career counseling patients throughout the southeast.  I can’t imagine the number of people he helped in his lifetime. And he combined his first two passions with a third, writing.

My grandfather published three nonfiction books, in which he combined his clinical expertise with his faith and Biblical teaching. My mother always wanted me to be a writer, or rather, always said that I WAS a writer, whether I realized it or not. But my grandfather was the practical application of possibility, the larger than life family man, minister, intellectual, and author, my example of how to live a full, passionate, and steadfast life.

I just wanted to take a day to honor him here on the blog.