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Calvin Desi (9)- grandchild

HI, My name is CJ. I wanted to share my memories of Papa with you. I saw my papa every day for the past two years.  Every night he would hide a speaker in our room and sing “happy trails”.  I love how he smiled every time we came through the front door.  I loved his humor.  I loved to hear him teach the Word.  It always touched my heart when he read the Bible.  At Christmas, he always gave the best gifts.  He was so generous.  He loved to surprise us and think of really good gifts. He loved me so much.  At the beach house, we would watch the sunset. He loved to play in the pool with us.  He loved to read the Bible with Joshua, Eva and I on the deck.  When we would have a sleepover, every Saturday he made us pancakes, bacon, and eggs. I loved to surprise him at work on his birthday with duck donuts. Papa was the one who baptized me.  And on my birthday, we would have a silly string fight.  My silly string always ran out before his.  I loved when papa took me to the egg & I for breakfast and then haircuts at the barber.  When I had Sunday night sleepovers, we would eat ice cream and watch Americas Funniest Home Videos.  On Christmas Eve, I would sleepover then run downstairs on Christmas morning to see him.  We all ate breakfast and he read the Christmas Story from Luke 1.  Papa taught me how to read the Bible.  Every time I was with him, papa taught me a bible study. Every night of the past 10 months I prayed with papa before bedtime. I learned how to fast for him. He made my life special by always opening his eyes when I came into the room even though he was really sick.  He always told me “I love you buddy” “You are a good boy”.  Papa reminded me of Job and Paul.  Paul finished the good fight no matter the hardship. Even though Job was in a hard trial, he beared it.  Then the Lord blessed him.  Papa would always get up for me and get dressed to come downstairs even when he was sick. He loved us so much and he didn’t want to see us hurt so he made sure to live life for us as normal as he could. He showed me how to have Godly character.  He wanted to teach us more how to die than how he taught us to live.  He wanted us to live for the Lord.  I admire him for his Godly character and legacy he left for me, Joshua and Eva.  He was the most loving, caring, generous, humble person I ever met.   Genesis 1:1 says God created the earth.  And when God created the earth, He knew Papa would have this trial.  But the Lord gave it to our family for a purpose.  The purpose was for us to Serve the Lord and to be faithful as a family.  On the night before Papa went home to be with Jesus, the Lord gave me Psalm 96:1.  “Sing to the Lord a new song! Sing to the Lord all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise His name! Proclaim His salvation day after day.  Declare his glory among the nations! The Lord gave Papa to us and we gave Papa back to the Lord as a praise offering. I hope my grandchildren love me as much I love Papa.    I love you papa. You are the best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eva Isabella (11)- grandchild

Hi, my name is Eva.  Papa called me his sweetie pie.  I would like to share with you how Papa delighted in me just like Jesus does.  There is nothing I could do to  make him angry or for him to love me  any less.   Before papa got sick, we lived with him for a year while our house was being built.  Every Sunday, I got up early to drive to church with him.  We would go through the car wash together.  We would get to church an hour before service began and serve together.  We would walk in together, holding hands. At our annual family beach vacation, I loved to wake up early with him and go get donuts for the family.  When we were in the pool, he made up a game called “Rocky waves”.  We would all get in a float, and Papa would rock us up and down then side to side.  He would eventually tip us over. We would ask him to play this game over and over.  On my parents birthday, I was at his house and I asked him to help me turn on the oven so I could bake a cake. He came over and offered to help me make the entire cake.  We read the directions together and everything.  Then we sat down and enjoyed the cake together. 

While  papa was sick, I loved to sleepover as much as I could.  I would wake up early to make sure we could do our bible study together.  I would sit on the arm rest and snuggle him.  If he needed help sending out his morning bible verse to the family, I would help him text. I already miss that time with him.  On Saturday mornings, he  would make the entire family a big pancake breakfast.  Joshua, CJ and I would always fight for who got to sit next to him.

I loved papa the most for how he always listened to me. Papa always delighted in me when I told him my stories.  This spring, I came to his house and told him everything that happened at my first softball game.  He would smile and we would give each other a big hug.  At our last trip to Duke, I remember what Papa said to comfort us “I have a very tough time ahead of me but I am not afraid of it.”  Papa was the most faithful, unchanging man I ever knew.  Papa came to the County Seat for breakfast with me, even when he could barely walk and wasn’t feeling good.  When we first moved into our new home, he came over for Grandparents day.  He came for CJ & I even though he was in pain.  A few days later we found out why he was in pain.  He had cancer.

Even when Papa was so sick this May, he came to my piano recital. Nothing would stop him from hearing me play.  He stood up the entire time I played and clapped for me.  I dedicated my songs to him. I played Blessed Be Your Name because no matter what, Papa always praised the Lord and thanked him.  I never heard papa complain.  When I finished my song, I ran to the back isle and sat on his lap.  The Sunday before papa met JESUS, a hundred people came to pray for him. The Lord gave me this verse,

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JOHN 11 : 4

“BUT WHEN JESUS HEARD THIS , HE SAID, “ THIS SICKNESS IS NOT TO END IN DEATH, BUT FOR THE GLORY OF GOD, SO THAT THE SON OF GOD MAY BE GLORIFIED BY IT ,”

 

Papa reminded me of Jesus in the way that you could always jump into his arms and he would hold you so close.  Papa loved his family more than anything you could offer him.   There will never be enough words to describe how much I love and miss Papa.  He was everything to our family.  Papa showed me who Jesus was.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joshua Randall (12)- grandchild

Hello everyone. My name is Joshua Randall Brizendine and I am Randy Guerra’s oldest grandchild. I loved my Papa very much and he meant the world to me. I have written down 25 of my favorite memories I loved about my Papa. I picked 25 things because that was the number he wore when he played baseball and it is the number I wear in baseball as well.

 

  1.  We both have a love for the Yankees.

  2. We both loved to go to the batting cages.

  3.  I loved talking with him through the Bible.

  4. I loved sitting in the back row at church with him.

  5.  I loved when we played basketball together.

  6.  I loved when I played catch in the yard with him.

  7. I enjoyed going to Sweet Frog with him and doing our devotionals together.

  8. I loved talking about baseball with him.

  9. We both were DIE HARD Miami fans.

  10. I loved when he came to my baseball games.

  11. I miss when he used to pray over me before I went to bed.

  12. I liked when he picked me up from          school.

  13. I liked when we made breakfast together.

  14. I love how kind and loving he was.

  15. I love that my Papa was a gentleman.

  16. I love that my Papa was a leader.

  17. I loved how he took care of my Grandma.

  18.   I love how he was a rock to our family.

  19.  I love that he taught me how to always trust in Jesus.

  20. I love that he comforted me when I was scared.

  21. I loved eating dinner with him after he came home from work.

  22. I am thankful that he taught me sports.

  23. I loved when we sat together in the morning and discussed our devotionals.

  24. I love that he had a strong faith in Jesus.

  25. I love how he believed in me in everything I did.

 

When I grow up I want to be like him and do what he did for his church and family because that’s how much he meant to me.

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