Tribute

On February 3, 2007, the world lost a fine man. He is not my natural grandfather, but he made me feel like I was one of his grandkids and part of his family. This is the first Christmas without him physically being with us, but I know he was there with all of the family last night at the family Christmas. I wrote this poem in tribute to a great man, Charles Henry Meadows, affectionately named PaPa. PaPa loved all of his family and extended family and was loved by all who had the honor of knowing him. It was my privilege to read this poem at the family Christmas last night.

There is an empty chair at the Christmas table this year
We miss his wit, his charm, and mostly his love
He was a quite man, who I never heard raise his voice
To child, grandchild or great grandchild
He would give you his advice
But never his opinion
He lived life with a vigor, that I now strive for
He was always working on one project or another
And he made perfection out of a simple piece of wood
Merry Christmas PaPa, we love and miss you,
But we know that you are forever in our hearts
And here with us today.

Written by Keith Wright 12/15/2007