Grandpa Johnson's Funeral - Grandchildren's Memories

Here is the talk I wrote with Justin and the other grandkids who sent me memories of Grandpa to share.

Memories of Grandpa Johnson

SHANNON

In an office filled with photos, notes and memories, there is a list of over 120 names and birthdays on a yellow-lined piece of paper from a legal pad. Using this simple system, our Grandpa Johnson has kept track of our birthdays for as long as I can remember. Every year, every month, he sent out birthday cards for: 

·      His four children and their spouses,

·      28 grandchildren and their spouses, and

·      60 great grandchildren 

I have trouble keeping track of my own immediately family’s birthdays and I have often wondered how he did it, year after year. What kind of a person could be so organized and so thoughtful to remember all of us? 

In a time where actual mail that you look forward to is a rarity, I loved receiving a card from Grandpa. It was a connection to my family and a way to keep my Johnson grandparents front and center in the lives of my children who lived far away. 

Grandpa was supportive and involved in each of our personal lives. He cared deeply about our interests and passions. He was so good with names, and could recognize even great grandkids at the drop of a hat.

President Russell M. Nelson said, “The JOY we feel has LITTLE to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the FOCUS of our lives.” 

I believe that Grandpa Johnson was focused on his family every single day, in some shape or form, and we are going to share some of his grandchildren’s favorite memories, stories and lessons learned from our Grandpa.  

JUSTIN

When I think of the many memories that I have of grandma and grandpa, one that sticks out in my mind the most is:

Memory1)

 Each time we would leave grandma and grandpas house, sitting in the back of the station wagon, we would wave to them as they stood on the porch waving back until they faded away as the distance grew. 

One of those times I had paid attention to the roofline and that the Christmas lights were still up on the exterior of the house, (mind you, it was in the summer). After that time and several times later I would ask myself, “why do they still have their lights up?

My first thought was, “my dad would have had those down a week after Christmas”

My second thought was, “ maybe grandpa was a little lazy, I knew that wasn’t it. 

My third thought and the one that I always believe it was, 

the lights of Christmas tradition represented the light of Christ, grandma and grandpas home to me was a beacon of light that always made me feel safe, loved, happy, and desired to always return. 

I remember sitting at his desk often and acting as if I were him -  (to this day I always have a yellow pad somewhere at my office and a number two pencil), I remember I would spend hours with Shannon going through the books both church and non-church related. Just not wanting to leave that room, there was always a sense of learning and peace in that room. 

There were times that he would share with us his feelings or better said, his “testimony” of Family, Church, and education, that these were things that were important to him and I know that we got the message.  

We can see in this room today that family is very important - we have all traveled from some sort of distance to pay respect and love to this great man.

THEME – CHURCH SERVICE

SHANNON

As a convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I know Grandpa felt a kinship with my husband, also a convert who was baptized in his early 20s.  A special moment for me was when Grandpa sealed Matt and me in the Las Vegas temple, bestowing powerful blessings on our marriage. In his blessing, he also welcomed my husband into a rich family heritage of pioneers, sacrifice and leadership that I only recently connected to his own feelings of being grafted into a wonderful lineage passed down by my Grandma Marie. 

As a Patriarch and Temple Sealer, Grandpa married or sealed many of us to our spouses, including his son Bryce and his wife Julie just two years ago. Out of the cousins, he performed the sealing ordinance for eight of us in various temples, traveling to marry those of us who lived out of state.  He also gave patriarchal blessings to nine of our cousins, a blessing that will help guide and direct those who received them for their entire lives. We count it a tender mercy to have his influence and spiritual guidance during these major milestones and life events. 

Katelyn said - He walked me down the aisle, and even though it wasn’t a temple marriage, he was so supportive and loving. He paid for my wedding dress as a gift, and showed love in so many ways. It meant the world to me in a time of trial with a lot of my family members. Grandpa was a solid rock at that time in my life.

JUSTIN

Grandpa’s church service and dedication was a wonderful example to us and we were proud of him and his selfless dedication to the gospel and to his family.  Shirae said:

Grandpa was one of the best men I knew. He truly cared about other people and you could feel it when he talked to you. I’ll always cherish the way he welcomed my husband Anthony into our family and loved him as his own, especially since Anthony didn’t have a close relationship with either of his grandfathers. He was easy to talk to, he was genuinely interested in your life /your success.

Erick said:

The image that I will hold with me forever is of the time I was able to do baptisms in the temple with my daughter Lily. It was her first time and she was nervous. From down in the font I looked up and saw that Grandpa had snuck in and was standing at the rails, dressed in white, with that huge grandpa J smile. It was a comfort to both of us. Megan said that being in the temple with Grandpa, Erick, and Lily all in the same room was amazing.  I felt the Spirit so strong and knew we were in the right place.  Grandpa told us later that that was a special memory he would keep forever. 

I’m sure that’s what we will see when we pass to the next life. Grandpa waiting, dressed in white.  Smiling. 

THEME – HARD WORK and DEDICATION

SHANNON

Grandpa is special to me for many reasons but one that stands out is for his example of pursuing an education and his entrepreneurship, starting his own business. I always felt proud of his work as a civil engineer – so much so that my first major at BYU was engineering.  The sheer amount of chemistry required, my least favorite subject in high school, ultimately made me change majors but it only made me respect his profession even more. 

While I was a college student, Grandpa didn’t ask me about boys or sports or music, though I’m sure he would have talked to me about that too if I had wanted to. He always supported my education and knew it was important to me. Over the years, he has continued to be interested in my career and my professional pursuits - he valued what I valued, he wanted to talk about what interested me. I will always be grateful that he encouraged me to pursue a career and to always keep learning. 

JUSTIN

One of the many things that I learned from him was to never let fear hold me back.

He taught me tonever give up.

He was successful at everything he did because he put timeand effortinto it.

An old proverb says, “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.” For each one of us there is always time to improve, to better our situation, and to grow into the person we want to become. I know grandpa believed this and I know he  wants this for each one of us. 

THEME – WE ARE ALL HIS FAVORITE

JUSTIN

I feel like I was his favorite. 

SHANNON

Actually, I think I was his favorite. 

JUSTIN

Each one of you cousins should feel the same way. Each time I was able to spend time with him I felt important, I felt that he cared about my family and well-being. 

That He wanted to know all new stuff that was going on in my life, he always told me how proud he was of me, how grateful he was for me, how amazing my wife was, how amazing and beautiful my children were. He was and is always one of my favorite people.  

Grandpa spoiled us and took care of us – he made time for us, even when we were far away. 

Natalie said:

Grandpa took the time to talk to me, let me open all the drawers in his office and poke around as he chuckled. I always felt so loved by him. We all did. He had a way of making each grandchild feel loved and special. His laugh was the best in this world.

Becky said:

Grandpa made trips to Utah almost every year and he always made sure to call me and set up a dinner date with he and grandma and my little family. They always stayed at the Little America hotel and we would eat at the restaurant there. He told us we could get what ever we wanted! It was always very enjoyable. And I was so proud to show him off to my husband and kids that he was MY grandpa. He made sure I knew he loved me and that he thought my kids and husband were special.

SHANNON

I will remember Grandpa with a camera in his hand.  Becky said, “As a child I remember him always walking around taking pictures of us all but feeling shy and not wanting to be in the pictures. But now I’m glad he “forced” those pictures.”

Memories and photographs are very important to me as well – documenting my family’s comings and goings, simple every day things and big events alike. I think I even persuaded Grandpa to take his first selfie with me! I shared some photos of him recently on social media, with Grandpa flashing his big bright smile. One comment stood out to me the most, “What a superstar!” a friend said. 

Other things that stood out to us in our memories were Grandpa’s hugs. He not only told you how much he loved you but you always got a hug too – hello and goodbye. 

Stephanie said:

I knew he loved my hugs and I loved his. Not too tight and not too gentle, somewhere right in between. 

Becky said – 

Whenever I would hug Grandpa I would end up smelling like his Old Spice aftershave. And at his birthday party a couple of weeks ago we chatted for a couple of minutes then I hugged him and walked way. As I did so I could smell the Old Spice on me and it made me smile.

THEME – HIS SMILE, HIS LAUGH, HIS VOICE

JUSTIN

Another common memory that stood out for many of us was the sound of Grandpa’s voice – whether it was his laugh, his teasing tone or his singing voice, it is something we will all miss hearing.  

We loved to hear him perform musical numbers with his sweetheart, and Shirae remembers hearing grandpa and grandma sing one duet in particular called “The Test”.  Words of this song, by Janice Kapp Perry read:

Didn't he say he sent us to be tested?
Didn't he say the way would not be sure?
But didn't he say we could live with him
Forever more, well and whole,
If we but patiently endure?
After the trial we would be blessed.
But this life is the test.

Stephanie said - Grandpa had a reverent voice; a soft, solemn baritone that immediately made you feel at peace. I don’t think I’ll ever forget Grandpa’s voice of reverence.

Shirae said:

He had the best laugh and biggest smile. I just loved his personality, the twinkle in his eye when he made a sarcastic comment / his stinkery side. Just a week ago I came for a visit and their caretaker Cindy woke him up and asked “Did you have a nice nap?” he replied in his feisty teasing tone “I did until ya woke me up!” trying to sound as grumpy as possible. Then as he slowly shuffled through the kitchen with the walker he flashed me his classic smile and said “So good to have you here”. 

Stephanie said,I will be forever grateful that I had that hour with him in the hospital, when he was tired but witty, full of banter and mischief despite being frustrated with the medication and being stuck in the hospital. He still made time to laugh with me and make me feel special. I miss him so much.

Shirae also noted that Grandpa was so supportive of his children and grandchildren. She said - I saw him sacrifice through the years to help them out of trouble and to try to push them to succeed. I deeply respected his dedication to the Lord and His Work. I witnessed several times the mantle of authority that was upon him as a patriarch and as a sealer in the Lords house, and was always amazed at the power and authority with which he spoke; the difference that came upon him.

When he passed, through my tears I wrote a few words of a song, part of how I grieve. “Did you have to go so fast? There’s so much I want to ask, still” - I wish I had more days with him, to learn from him, to joke with him, to love him. 

THEME – SELFLESS SERVICE 

SHANNON

I am proud to be part of his family, proud to be his granddaughter. I think we all felt that his example was one we should follow both in his personal, professional and spiritual life. I am grateful for his Christ-like service and love for our family. 

Erick said:

I learned the importance of a life of service. Grandpa was always serving others. In his last month on earth and he was still about the service of others- trying to schedule blessings when he couldn’t even stand to give the blessing. His last patriarchal blessing was given sitting down because he couldn’t stand because of back pain. His main focus was making sure that Grandma would be taken care of once he left this earth. To this end he worked tirelessly until he could not. 

One of the last things I heard him say to my dad on the day he passed will stick with me. He kept repeating, “do you.....do you....” and finally was able to get out the question to my dad “do you have a cold?” Literally in his last breath he was asking about others, not himself.

JUSTIN

Things that will always remind us of Grandpa Johnson:

Low top dress boots

Cadillac’s

“Real” mashed potatoes 

Bacon, eggs, toast and orange juice 

Baseball caps and sneakers

Playing golf 

Christmas lights on the house at Brookhill 

Felling safe, loved, and happy at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, and always wanting to come back soon 

Days at the river

Dry roasted peanuts

Camera flashes

Fly fishing

Cold hot chocolate 

Razzleberry Pie 

Old Spice or No Spice 

Birthday cards

Yellow legal pad

SHANNON

Things we learned from Grandpa: 

Real men wear pastels.

It’s possible to be confident and humble at the same time. 

To be a real man, one doesn’t have to be rough or tough.

Making one person feel special doesn’t diminish anyone else’s light. 

Put others first and blessings will follow. 

There is no such thing as small service. 

To love is to tease. 

Follow the Golden Rule. 

Invest in yourself and in those around you. 

Take risks and never give up. 

JUSTIN

Arnold has always been one of my hero’s and I have always admired him tremendously. 

He has many Christ like attributes and has always been someone I have tried to be like. 

He is my personal example of the savior Jesus Christ here on earth. He has always been kind, loving, and forgiving.

He was always thoughtful, patient and selfless.

I have never felt judged by him And He made me want to be a better version of myself.

His example is a constant reminder that we have the ability to do better and be better. 

I found a quote which reminded me how grandpa lived his life..

(Quote) No matter how dark the night may be, in the morning, the sun will rise and not only for the earth but also for us. And with a new day comes a new start—a chance to begin again (end quote).

There are so many things in life that require us to take a leap of faith and trust in the lord. 

Grandpa was a living example of someone who chose to live by this standard.

When I think back on the many conversations we have had in my adult life, he was always there to talk me through any hardships or trials I may have been going though. His lessons were always simple......Never allow the mundane problems of this life affect who I am as a man, a father, a  husband, a business owner, a friend, and most importantly, a Child of God,

President Dieter F. Uchdorf said, 

“The more we learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more we realize that endings here in mortality are not endings at all. They are merely interruptions—temporary pauses that one day will seem small compared to the eternal joy awaiting the faithful.”

“How grateful I am to my Heavenly Father that in His plan there are no true endings, only everlasting beginnings.”

We will see our grandfather again – and when we do I hope he will be just as proud of us as we were of him. 

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