Grandpa

Happy Friday, Friends:

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama! 😊

On Wednesday, March 6, 2024, at approximately 12:39 p.m. CST our family suffered a great loss and Heaven gained another precious soul. My Beautiful Brides Dad, Savino Anthony Marracino, passed away. I am writing this Happy Friday to honor him.

Grandpa was a special man. He loved his family, the Phoenix Suns, and playing poker. He was a very quiet, private man which made it hard to get close to him.

As I have thought so much about Grandpa over the last few days it finally hit me, we kinda grew up together. You see, I first met Grandpa 40 years ago when I was 16 and he was 47-years old, 9 years younger than I am as I type this message. He was in the thick of his career and trying to raise his family. I was a totally lost kid, parents currently going through a divorce, and beyond crazy about his daughter. He always went to bed early because he got up super early…something I did not understand or appreciate until I had my own career and family. If I stopped by their house around lunch time, he would often be taking a nap before rushing back to work. I truly don’t recall any meaningful conversations at that time and our communication was pretty much limited to “hi” and “bye.”

Most of the lack of communication and depth of relationship I would blame on me. I was so, so lost. I had not yet taken my faith seriously, I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, I had no relationship with my dad, I was incredibly irresponsible…just absolutely lost.

There is one vivid memory from this season that is profound to me. Grandpa had been promoted at work to a senior leadership position and he was miserable. I no longer remember all the details, however something got hold of my spirit, and I put together this whole presentation for Grandpa based largely on John Wooden’s pyramid of success. This is the first truly meaningful conversation I remember us having. He listened carefully and ultimately decided to resign from his leadership position and return to his previous position where he thrived for the remainder of his career.

A sweet memory I have from somewhere in this season, I think I was in junior college at the time, was going to a baseball game with Grandpa at what I believe was then Bank One Ballpark. I truly don’t remember anything that was said that night, however I remember Grandpa when we saw Ken Griffey, Jr. hit one of the most majestic home runs I had ever seen. We looked at each other with these huge smiles on our faces. To this day I will point out to anyone who will listen where that ball landed when Grandpa and I went to the game together.

In the very early years, Grandpa was Sal to me – he was Sal to everyone. Later on, he became “Boss” however everything changed when we had our first son. From that time on he was Grandpa. The name fit him perfectly.

I can’t share 40 years’ worth of stories here, however I want to share a few that are very special to me.

The first one was when I was working at Arizona State University (ASU). We have fast-forwarded 17 to 20 years now and I have grown tremendously – spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. My faith had become incredibly important to me, I was reading my Bible and praying daily, I was reading everything on leadership I could find, and I was doing everything I could do to be the man, husband, father, leader, and friend that God created me to become. In this season of life my spirit really began to convict me. When I asked Kathy to marry me and we got married, I never asked Grandpa for permission to do so. While I was ashamed of how irresponsible and disrespectful I had been, I wasn’t willing to let the story end that way. I called Grandpa and asked if we could meet for lunch. We met for lunch at the golf course right by ASU. At that lunch I apologized to Grandpa for not having asked for permission and I asked him if it would be o.k. for me to marry his beautiful daughter. He kinda started laughing and said, “Yes, of course.” At that time, we had been married for about 17 years.

If you have seen me in the last, say 20 years or so, you know my watches are pretty big. Let me tell you how that happened. One time Kath and I went home for a visit…I can’t remember where we were living at that time. Grandpa hands me a box and I open it. Inside was the biggest, most beautiful Invicta watch I had ever seen. I asked Grandpa what this was for, and he said, “I saw it, thought you would like it, and I got it for you.” Still touches my heart to this day! And that began the collection of watches I now have…

In 2022, my family and I went to Arizona to have Christmas with Grandma & Grandpa. They were getting ready to move into assisted living, much of the house was packed, and they didn’t have any Christmas decorations up. I was out to lunch with my Beautiful Bride, and I felt compelled to do something for Grandma & Grandpa about the Christmas decorations, or lack thereof! After lunch we went to Hobby Lobby and bought them a little Christmas tree and little ornaments to match. You know how little kids’ faces light up as they decorate a Christmas tree? That was Grandpa’s face as he decorated that tree! I can still see that sweet face full of joy…a memory I will cherish forever.

Whenever Grandpa and I would say goodbye, we would always shake hands. When I went to shake his hand when we were leaving after that Christmas visit, he pulled me in and gave me a huge hug. It was the first time he had ever hugged me…it wouldn’t be the last however it will always be my favorite.

A few weeks ago, Kathy, Payton, and I took a trip to see Grandma and Grandpa. There were some things we needed to visit with Grandpa about. On that Saturday morning, I listened to a podcast that was the perfect message that Grandpa needed to hear. I couldn’t wait to get to him and share the message with him. He, Kath, and I sat and listened to that message. And he was funny, he really wanted to listen to it. Kath would say something, and he would wave at her to be quiet. This might not seem profound to you however if you really knew Grandpa, you would know how significant that was. After the podcast ended, we talked for a few minutes, I told Grandpa what a great man he is, and we all held hands and prayed together. All of this was, without question, God-ordained and I will cherish that trip and that conversation forever!

Grandpa was in hospice and on Monday morning he asked Kathy to call me. He told her he wanted to say goodbye. When we got on the phone he said, “Thank you for taking such good care of Kathy.” I said, “Thank you for letting me.” He said, “I love you,” and I said, “I love you.” Grandpa then began to cry. I told him it was all o.k. and I promised we would take care of everything. Those are the last words we spoke to one another.

How do you end a message you don’t want to end? I am truly cherishing this time sitting here thinking about Grandpa. I think I will end it by sharing a few lessons that Grandpa and I learned together.

You don’t have to see everything the same to love one another.

It is never too late – to apologize, forgive, and love – yourself and others.

We all have faults, failures, and mistakes…it is what you do next that matters most.

Family time, even if someone chooses not to be actively involved, is a cherished time.

Invicta watches really are very cool! 😊

I love you, Grandpa, I am so very thankful for you, and I promise we will take care of everything!

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious family, and please stay well!

Kev