She was quietly laying down on the couch when I came in.  I closed the door ever so quietly, wanting to just give her a kiss on the forehead and leave but she heard it anyway.  Her eyes lit up when she saw me and she stood up and gave me a tight embrace.  Her frail arms enveloped me and I could feel her hollow cheeks on mine.  I led her back to the couch and sat with her.

“There’s coffee and crackers on the dining table, do you want some?,” she delightfully asked.

“No, lola.  I’m going to a birthday dinner and I don’t want to ruin my appetite.” I said with a smile.

“Oh, that’s exciting!  Can you bring home some food for me?”  She paused like she was thinking about what type of food she wanted.  She wanted noodles and some rice cakes so I said I would bring her some.

She started talking about my grandfather who passed away two months ago.  They met at a place so far from where we were and she loved him.  She went on about the difficulty of a long distance marriage when my lolo had to work overseas to support her and their six children.  “Love is a difficult thing,” she said with misty eyes.  Then there was silence.  I thought she fell asleep but then she touched my hand and asked delightfully, “There’s coffee and crackers on the dining table, do you want some?,”

I looked at her with sadness yet I gave her the brightest smile I could muster.  “No, lola.  I’m going to a birthday dinner and I don’t want to ruin my appetite.”

“Oh, that’s exciting!  Can you bring home some food for me?”

…

***

Today’s writing prompt from Robin Tuthill of LinkedIn’s Freeing The Writer Within:

Describe a grandparent.