"Listen, Kid... Forget everyone else. Do what YOU want to do. You'll be worm food soon enough, so do what you want to do."
I can't remember when Grandpa said that to me, because it could have been once, or it could have been a hundred times. He died in 2003 but sometimes I can hear his voice still ringing in my ears, helping me when I'm not sure of what path to take.
March 12th is Grandpa's birthday, and this year he'd be 90. If he were still were alive, he'd be at The Korner, a neighborhood bar, buying everyone and their dog (yes, the dog, too), a round (or four) of beer. Well, I'm passing around a little love on Grandpa's birthday. I'm doing what I want on his birthday. (And he'd like that.)
I'm not really sure of whether or not Grandpa was an Aspie, but it really wouldn't surprise me. He did things differently, and he always understood me. He was the person in my life that really "got me" and when he passed, it was tragic for me. That person who "got me" was gone.
Little did I know that he would always be around to remind me of his advice. His words of wisdom that always came my way... Every summer I would stay with my grandparents out at their ranch near Lake Somerville, and I still treasure those mornings when we would make our rounds together to feed the catfish, and check on the cattle. Most of the times we walked quietly, but when we talked it was meaningful. I don't know that I could tell you everything that we talked about, but it comes to me when I need it the most.
In honor of Grandpa's 90th birthday, I decided to celebrate the way he would have.
I have a private consulting practice called Aspie Friendly, and I decided that the most fitting way to honor my Grandpa, "Wild Bill" Suda, would be to give some stuff away.
If you want to learn more about it, go to my consulting site at www.AspieFriendly.org. If not, that' cool, too.
But either way, let's pass around some love in honor of Grandpa! Me? I'm giving out free consulting for the whole Korner.
