The world?s greatest fan

My grandfather is the world?s greatest fan. Of his wife of over 50 years, of his five grandkids, of farming and of course his White Sox. For their honeymoon, he took my gram to Niagara Falls. He made a joke about jumping in, but even after 50 years he still is her biggest fan.

My family used to take family vacations to Wisconsin Dells. Once, when I was around seven, I talked him into going down a waterslide with me. The problem was he just had a pacemaker put in a few months previous. The first two times were a lot of fun, but once Gram caught us on the third, the fun was over. In my defense, I was just a kid and didn?t know any better. In his defense, yeah he knew better. And Gram was not happy.

In 1973 he moved my dad, aunt and gram into a 1924 farmhouse on the five acres they still own today. His brother made him a sign as a housewarming gift and dubbed it ?The RRT Ranch.? In one of the barns there was a batting cage where together we could play baseball, one of his favorite hobbies. He built a tire swing and a regular swing for the grandkids, too.

He was always the guy you could count on for playing Sorry!, dominoes or any other board game nobody else wanted to play. You could also always count on him to provide ice cream bars after dinner. And before dinner, if you were stealthy enough to eat them before getting caught.

The ranch was, and still is, my favorite place to explore. On his five acres, he planted a small apple orchard. Across from the orchard he planted a cherry tree for each of the grandkids. Except there are only four because he accidentally ran mine over with the lawn mower. Oops.

Although he and Gram lived over two hours away, they made it to every sporting, theater or school event they could. One time I was in a musical about baseball, his favorite, and he said, ?Hey, I liked that!? He was just the world?s greatest fan.

Last November, his health took a turn for the worse. After a few days in the hospital, he ended up on hospice. For the trip home, I brought him a White Sox blanket. The ambulance driver, a Cub fan, joked that he wouldn?t be able to take him home with a blanket like that. As a Cub fan myself, I completely understood where he was coming from. But my grandpa just laughed and said they were going to win it all one year. He might not be around to see it, but he was sure they were going to.

When my Gram got home shortly after, the first thing he said to her was, ?How about some heat?? He was notorious for being cold and aging farmhouses can be rather drafty. Also, he liked to say whatever he could to get her riled up about something.

In the end, he was right. If the Sox do make it, he won?t be around to see it. He passed away a few days later and each new holiday without him brings up a whole new set of emotions and memories, but I call him the world?s greatest fan and talk as if he?s still here because to me, he is.

When I came up to Washington for my interview, it was snowing, which I always take as a sign of good luck. But when I drove past the square, I saw there was a stage. Then I noticed it was dedicated for a guy named Ralph: the same name as my grandpa. Maybe I was just looking for a positive sign, or maybe it was just a coincidence, but I choose to believe it was his way of telling me that I was going to be okay.

I?m less than three hours from home, but moving out all on your own for the first time is scary. All you have is a pile of student loans to weigh you down, your dog to keep you company and a frying pan to make grilled cheese every night. But driving past that stage and seeing his name gave me hope, peace and a sense of love.

On my right wrist I always wear my watch and two or three other bracelets. One of those bracelets has the coordinates to the ranch, so I can always find my way back home. My grandpa might not be here with me, physically, but I know he?s wherever I am because he?s the world?s greatest fan.

He would never give up on his team.