Ach Du Lieben Bill

This is one of my favorite pictures of my grandparents. They always bickered playfully with each other in their kitchen. Bill would go out visiting around the neighborhood and Erna would wait and wonder where he was. "Where have you been Bill Follack" was a frequent question. Bill would smirk and reply something like "What, have you missed me?" They were the cutest couple, Bill always reaching for Erna's hand or leg. She would always look embarassed but smile. She passed away after a lengthy illness and Bill was left alone for a few years. He couldn't survive without his sweetheart and his health deteriorated. He ended up in a nursing home and developed dementia/alzheimers and then cancer eventually overtook him. At his funeral, the family did not want an open casket because he looked so weak and sick; but the "church ladies" had to see him (I think they were morbid) but it gave them something to talk about . . . how horrible he looked at the end. Can you tell it still bothers me because it hurt my mom so much? Anyhow, while the casket was opened, the family stayed in another room and were visibly upset by the request of an open casket. I looked at my mom and her siblings and said: "Think of it the way I see it: I see Grandma waiting for Grandpa at the gates of heaven saying, "Bill Follack, where have you been?" It made everyone smile and helped us get through the rest of the day.