A Walk in the Woods: For My Grandpa

 As some of you may know, Yesteryear Acres has been especially busy lately due to a family emergency. We have been trying so hard to place our available puppies to wonderful homes quite quickly as my Grandfather had taken quite ill very suddenly. We appreciate so much your help in spreading the word about our sweet loving dogs so that we could spend more time with our family. It is with sadness that I have to write about last night’s passing of J. Richard 'Dick' Emens- my Grandpa.

My Grandpa was a man who loved the outdoors. There wasn't a tree, flower, plant, or bird that he couldn't identify. My fondest memories will always be our summer walk in the woods in Michigan. On what seemed like the LONGEST walk to the lake as a child- he filled that with magical stories of the trees as we passed. What kind they were, how each leaf told a story, what the different kinds of bark meant, and how we could learn from the woods around us. My grandpa was a walking bird guidebook and made each outing an amazing adventure. He always said 'Yes' every time I asked "Grandpa do you want to go in the lake with me?" and even taught me how to sail his sunfish sailboat with all the right lingo- making me feel like the coolest kid ever. He made summer feel like a never-ending field trip, complete with the most magical bedtime stories. I learned so much about him over the years as he wrote interesting "Stories of his Life" to help us learn little 'life lessons' as we grew up. 

My Grandpa was a firm believer in academic learning as well as learning through exploration. He made sure we had incredible opportunities growing up to learn about the big world around us- urging us and helping us travel any chance we could get. I will forever be grateful for the places I have been and the memories we got to share.

My Grandpa was an advisor to many, but a Grandpa to just a lucky few of us. I am grateful that he is no longer suffering or in any pain. May you have an endless wilderness to explore, with more lady slipper flowers, monarch butterflies, Petoskey stones, and beech trees than you can count. 

You will be missed by many.

I will forever be thankful for our last big family dinner together

Cheers Grandpa- You are missed

~Our daily blogs and updates from Yesteryear Acres most likely will be short or sparse in the next few weeks as we help my Grandma with the loss of my Grandpa. We appreciate your support and understanding. We still have puppies available that we would love to have the perfect home. Ideally, we would love to have them find new homes as soon as possible as that would be ideal for both our family and our little paws. If you or someone you know is looking for a four-legged companion, please let us know. We would truly love that at this time. Thank you.~

Always,

Amelia