See that handsome guy in the middle? That's Pap. He's my grandpa. Pap is 84 years old and he still mows his yard (riding mower), does his own edging/weed eating, drives a truck, fishes at Lake Belton, goes to coffee with his life-long pals every morning, flies to Atlanta to visit his son and grand-sons, and goes to Austin and Houston to visit his daughter and grand-daughter. Pap is my hero. He had open heart surgery a few years ago and decided to start wearing a life jacket when he goes fishing. He is the wisest man I know.
Yesterday, Pap was fishing with his 86 year old friend R.A. and R.A.'s brother. Pap fell in Lake Belton yesterday. We are all so thankful that he was wise enough to wear a life jacket. He was floating and was safe. R.A. and his brother tried to lift Pap onto the back of their fishing boat. This fishing boat was not made to have a lot of weight in the back. Long story short, the boat started taking on water and eventually sank to the bottom of the lake. R.A. and brother were not wearing life jackets. They were able to swim to some trees that were growing in the water and hang on. The water temperature of the lake was 60 degrees yesterday. I don't know how long they were clinging to those trees. Pap considered swimming to shore to get help, which was pretty far away. I don't believe he would have made it there without having a heart attack. Thankfully, some fishing buddies of theirs saw them when they were headed back to the dock. They rescued them and brought them to shore. R.A. drove Pap home to get dry clothes and went to get some himself. They went back to the lake and got the owner of the marina to help them get the sunken boat out of the water. They were able to pump water out of the boat and get it on the trailer. I am in awe of my Pap and his friends. How can 3 men in their 80's retrieve a sunken boat from the bottom of a lake??? These guys are my heroes.
My Granny (pretty lady on the right) was playing bridge while all of this was happening and had no clue that there was anything amiss. She got home and noticed that Pap's wallet was open on the counter and all of his money and credit cards were out and soaking wet. She found him laying on the bed and asked him immediately if he fell in the lake. He said yes. She asked him if this was his last fishing trip. He said yes.
I am deeply saddened for Pap, because fishing was his favorite thing. He said that God isn't finished with him yet and that's why he's still here. He's not going to fish anymore, but he isn't going to stop living life either. I love you Pap and I pray that we have many more joy-filled years together.
