Reflecting....

I met Brian just over 11 years ago.  We worked together for 5 months before we really talked or interacted much.  But once we went on our first date, it was all history.

Brian was in his early 20's when his dad passed away.  For most of our dating relationship, I didn't really know much about his dad.  Brian talked about time he spent with his Grandma Hart, but didn't really talk about his memories of his dad often.  When I would ask him about his dad, he would laugh and say he has a bad memory, and I partially felt like maybe it was too painful for Brian to talk about.

Over the years, I've heard different stories about Joe from Uncle John and I've learned a lot from visits with cousin Steve too.  From those interactions, I have come to realize that Brian just needs some prompting to remember things about his dad - which was something I didn't think I could do.

However, I was wrong.  I gave Brian the biggest prompt possible - 2 little guys.  Each day of interacting with Lincoln and Jackson brings more childhood memories for Brian.  He talks about his dad and growing up more now than he ever has. 

This has been the greatest gift imaginable.  Although I never had the pleasure to meet Joe, I feel like I know him.  I see him almost every day, when my husband plays with our sons.  His interests and passions were instilled in Brian, and Brian is now passing those traditions down to our boys.  We listen to the Reds on the radio, watch the games on TV, and are looking forward to taking the boys to many games in the future.  The boys also love being outdoors and helping daddy do yard work.  They are definitely country boys! 

So, thank you God for blessing us with these amazing little boys.  Although they will never know Grandma and Grandpa Hart personally, they are helping to keep their memories alive for Brian forever.