A Grandfather I never met, who died before I was born, is a memory of the past history that is renewed in the present day, because of what a loving man he was, and my Mom talked about him, told her children about him, through oral history his name Yo' sef or Joseph lives on.
Today is his birthday, he was born in the Middle European Country of Cheskia, the Czech Republic. He passed away at age 69, succeeding my Dad by one year who passed away at age 68. My Father gave my Grandfather Joseph his blood in a blood transfusion to try to save his life, my Dad's blood flowed into my Grandfather's veins, he was suffering with stomach cancer and my Dad tried to help him. But he died, and his yarhzeit is on my Mother's birthday. She was at his bedside when he passed away and she said The Good Lord was in the room with them as he passed.
My Grandfather was an artist, a musician, an inventor, and a factory worker. He painted photographs, coloring the pics with photo paint, colored photographs were not invented yet, so he colored them himself with paint. He invented the dental floss stick to clean peoples' teeth. He worked together with an engineer to create it. He was a musician, he lovingly played a flute. My Mom said it was so joyous in her house because they heard his flute, the soprano high notes sounding like Angels singing.
My Grandfather Joseph, smoked a pipe and thin cigars, and my Grandfather Hyman on my Dad's side owned a Cigar Shop. My Dad quit smoking at the age of 28 and I quit smoking cigarettes at the age of 31 on May 2nd 1990, 3 months before my Dad passed away. He tried so very hard to help me quit smoking, and I finally did. I took a cigarette cessation class held by the American Lung Association. I remember seeing a movie in the class of the Marlboro Man riding on a horse with his nose and mouth hooked up to an oxygen tank. I crushed all my cigarettes and threw them and all my lighters and ashtrays into the garbage can. Never smoked again.
Now sweetness of breath with clean lips, white teeth, extra cash in my pocket, and clean good healthy heart and lungs have become my trophy.
My Grandfather Joseph and Hyman would be very proud of me, if they are looking down on me from their statute in Heaven. Smoking yourself to death is not a good way to go. Thank you, Grandfathers, for letting me know by being my pioneers.
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