Yoga

Dear Grandpa,


For the first time ever, in my life, I did yoga. No offense to all of the yoga-masters out there, but I thought this was going to be a piece of cake. I mean, you've seen me run for hours at a time in my soccer games and even you must understand the "muscle gene" we have on our side of the family. When you were 80 years old, looking more like a string bean than ever, you lugged around Grandma's suitcases like they were empty and you never once accepted help.


So, back to yoga. I walked into the room, set up my little mat, and relaxed. Some people stretched while others folded themselves into pretzels, but I figured they were overachievers. Everyone walked in like they were going to the gym, whereas I had on a v-neck tee-shirt and hardtails. No sports bra. Not only was I amazed that our teacher was a student, but she also looked like I could break her in half. Yoga was going to be a joke...


Ha! Just look at some of the positions this woman (attempted) to get me into:

Grandpa, I sweat through my shirt! Yoga was NOTHING I expected. I think you would have laughed if you saw the amount of times I fell over. My knees hurt just as much afterwards as if I played a full 90 minutes of a soccer game. After tonight, I give so much respect to the yoga-masters out there. I am definitely going to be sore in the morning!


Love always,
Your granddaughter

I'm sorry

Dear Grandpa,


I just listened to a short clip of a soldier who called the wrong number, but left the sweetest message on the answering machine. It made me think of all of the times when I should have called you just to tell you that I love you. There is nothing more important in the world then my family and I'm sorry I didn't realize it sooner. I might have even forgotten to call you on father's day, and if I did, I'm sorry for that too. 


I'm calling Grandma as much as I can, now, because I don't want to make the same mistake with her. I want her to have no doubt in her mind that I am constantly thinking about her and missing her, just like I do with you now. 


Love always,
Your granddaughter

One in a million

Dear Grandpa,


My day was filled with reading and writing, along with the occasional snacking. I did have time, however, to go food shopping for myself. I felt like a mom! 


Since I can't really think of anything exciting that went on today, I'll leave you a video to watch. It totally makes up for all of the lost entertainment today and probably the entirety of my semester here. Ugh!

Love always,

Your granddaughter

SUNY New Paltz

Dear Grandpa, 


Today was my first day living in New Paltz. It was weird being alone, but it's a glimpse of what will happen after college. I think you would have liked it here because there are bars EVERYWHERE. All of the students fill up the places on game nights, or Trash Tuesdays and they make it feel like you're in a movie about college. It's unreal!


The school is great and the campus is beautiful. I'm getting to know my way around and I am doing my best to keep organized. Making friends is going to be tough because I live off-campus and in a home with no roommate, but you know me. I'll make my way into the crowds soon enough.


I will post a picture, or maybe even a video, of my room so you can see it. It's completely Grandpa-proof too, doing away with a stove and oven. We always tried to keep you away from the flamable things...


I might not be able to write to you everyday like I did earlier, with the work and all, but I am going to try my best. Love and miss you like crazy.


Love always,
Your granddaughter


P.S. It's beautiful up here with the snow and all, but this whole -12 degrees thing is really not to my liking. HELP!

Never been unloved

Dear Grandpa,

I'm not big into religious music. Infact, I usually make fun of it, but this song made me think of you. You've been a lot of things, but I hope you know that you were never unloved.

Love always,

Your granddaughter

Enough with this weather!

Dear Grandpa,


I need to work out! Today, I did nothing but sleep, eat, watch mindless tv, sleep, and play on my phone. I enjoy the feeling of working out when I'm finally doing it, but the weather is making me so unmotivated. I think it's time for spring.


As much as Daddy thinks I should try out for the soccer team next fall, two full years of not touching a ball is a little troubling. I love the sport, really, but I'm worried that I won't get back into the swing of things. Plus, I just watched Enough the other day, you know, the movie where J. Lo. kicks her husbands butt, and I was thinking of taking up kickboxing! However, that takes time and money, two of which I do not have :(.


If it were up to you, what would you do? Soccer, or kickboxing? Could you use some of your super cool spiritual powers and send me a sign? At least send me some better weather so I can actually run outside without getting frostbite. You're the best!


Love always,
Your granddaughter

Time travel?

Dear Grandpa,


I bet you would have never thought that something like this would happen in my lifetime. I was surfing gizmodo, like I usually do when I'm bored, and I found a link that caught my eye. According to this article, physicists in Australia claimed to have discovered time teleportation! How awesome is that?! If everything works out, we could possibly travel into the future, but there are great dangers with doing so. If anything is changed in the present, then the future will change and vice versa.


The question is, would you do it? If you had the chance to see what your future is like, would you risk the dangers? The times have definitely changed since you were a kid, Grandpa, but I bet you probably dreamed of something like this. I wish you were here to see this.


Love always,
Your granddaughter

The very beginning...

Dear Grandpa,


The night I wrote your eulogy, I didn't cry. Normally, when I thought about you and your disease, it felt like squeezing lemon juice on an open cut, but that night it didn't hurt. It was a relief to not feel the opression I had felt ever since I was young, ever since I started to write. It was a closure that helped me move forward, understand, and respect your death.


My creative writing teacher once told me that sometimes, you write about the same thing thousands of times because you feel that the story is never complete. That is how I felt, ever since I thought that rhyming poems were the only kind of poetry. I could never fully express what I really meant to say, which is why your passing was such a closure. I finally said everything that I ever wanted to say in one, single poem. 


I recently watched a video, 99 balloons, on youtube and it inspired me. This father made a video to his deceased son, describing the monumental points in his life. It was absolutely beautiful and I thought, instead of writing about you I could write to you. All of the sudden, a flow of ideas rushed into my mind. I decided to make a website of my letters to you because I always wanted you in my memory, even though I wasn't always in yours. I would write you things that were important, stupid, silly, exciting, anything just to keep you updated on my life.


I hope you can be proud of me, Grandpa. I plan to donate every penny made on this website to the Alzheimer's Association, (www.alz.org) to help fight the disease through research and support groups. Every donation will be made in your name, Peter Hernandez.


You are in my heart and always on my mind. I miss you.


Love always,
Your granddaughter