Papaw.

I said I wouldn't talk about anything sad on here, but this man needs at least a blog post dedicated to him.

James Levi Vestile, "papaw" to my brother & I, passed away last week after 89 years on this earth...68 of those years being married to my sweet mamaw. What an amazing life he lived, & an equally amazing example of what true love really looks like.

My papaw was a man of few words. So are my dad, and my brother...hmmm must be a Vestile gene. That one missed me though. However, when he did speak you listened. So, I'm keeping this post short & to the point - the way he liked things done. Some of the most memorable (& quite funny) things he taught us were...

Euchre is a fast game. And don't you dare trump your partner's Ace.
Do whatever comes natural. A classic line. Whenever I would call & ask what he was doing, he would always reply with that.
If you're going into education, you better choose administration. It's where the money is. (Devin is working on that one, Papaw.)
Tell people you love that you are proud of them. Sometimes I would get calls from him out of the blue, just saying how proud he was of me. The calls never lasted over a minute each, but man did they make a lasting impression.
Work hard. I've never met anyone who worked harder than he did. My dad comes in at a close second, though.

And finally, always tell the truth. At my wedding 7 years ago, my Mamaw & Papaw were called to the dance floor for being married the longest out of our 424 guests (thanks for fitting the bill on that one, Dad). When asked what advice they wanted to give us, he quickly replied with "Always tell the truth." My Mamaw then said, "Just love each other." Simple, easy, to the point.

Maybe if we could all just tell the truth & love each other, this world would be a much better place.

Love you, Papaw. And, we'll take care of Mamaw.