It was dark and cold that day and I remembered coming home early from school.(This was Spring 1993 when I was still a senior in High School). Usually as I get off the bus in front of my house, I could see my grandfather sitting in his rocking chair smoking his pipe on the patio. But as I opened the gate, I saw nothing except for our dog, Sam staring at me as if I am a totally stranger. I bent down and gave him a pat saying, "Hey boy, where's everybody else?" Sam made a loud howl and walked away to the other side of the house. At first I was angry and asked myself: why was Sam acting like that, and then I wasn't so sure if something wrong was going on inside the house.

I couldn't wait to open the door, calling out on top of my voice, "Mom, where are you? There was no answer, but the door wasn't locked. The house was so messy that it looked like someone packing up to go someplace. I found a note on the table that said:

"Dear Honey, sorry there's no one home at this time, because we are at the hospital. Your grandpa is in a very dangerous situation. Don't worry just find something to eat and stay inside the house. Love, Mom."

I hold the note and cried loudly, "0h! God please don't take away my grandfather from us." Even though I was hungry, I could not feel like eating; and at the same time, I did not feel like staying inside the house.

I did not even know how long I had been sitting inside the kitchen crying when I heard a loud knock at the door. I got up quickly to find my brother standing outside. He told me that grandfather had died of heart attack already, and that he was coming to take me with him to the hospital.

As I entered the room in the hospital, I couldn't hold back the tears from my eyes when I saw the familiar figure of my grandfather laying there as if he had been sleeping. I bent down and kissed his forehead saying, "This is not fair, how can you just leave without saying good-bye?" I thought I saw him smiling back at me and then continue sleeping again, but it was only just my imagination.

The day of grandfather's funeral was one of the most beautiful days in my life. It was a warm spring with gleaming rays of sun. The sweet melody of the wind's whispering just like lovers declaring their love for one another on a moonless night, as families and friends gathered together to said one last word of good-bye to this person. I stood far away from everybody else during the funeral ceremony, because I wanted to remember the day as if my grandfather had not died yet. Unfortunately, I felt angry toward myself for not saying sorry the last time I was with him, but I could not even move, because I didn't want to believe that he was actually dead. I will never see that familiar face always sitting on the patio reading his newspaper, smoking his pipe, greeting me as I walk from the bus into his lighted smile.