The Bond of Family.

I have written previous about my great grandfather Thomas Franklin who was a family doctor who practised medicine in my tiny home town for over fifty years. "The Doctor" was a pillar in the community, and was dearly loved by all who knew him. He was gruff and abrupt, but also kind and generous to a fault and during his life time brought over three thousand children into the world. Granddaddy and my grandfather his son were partners in a drug store in which was located Grandaddy's medical office, ******** and an early x-ray unit.

My grandfather operated the x-ray machine for his father, and the machine was one of the first to be used in the state. This partnership worked well together and my grandfather Roy told me many times that his father had always been his best friend. Grandaddy died of cancer in 1958 when I was ten and I remember watching the hearse leave Grandaddy's home on the way to the church for the funeral, sad that Grandaddy was gone, but in loyalty to my grandfather stayed at home with him during the funeral, because Grandpa refused to go to his father's funeral. I don't think Grandpa wanted anyone to see him break down in public over the death of his father.

Many years later and just a few years before Grandpa died I had occasion to visit with him and he told me about a dream, or a vision that he had received about his father. Grandpa told me that during the dream he was seated in a beautiful garden, he described it as a "Greek garden" because he said that there were marble seats to sit on and "Doric" columns were scattered throughout the garden. He stated that the garden was very beautiful and that the colors of the plants, trees and flowers in the garden were astonishingly bright and were different than any he had ever seen.

Grandpa said that he was seated on one of the marble benches in an alcove of sorts quite confused by where he was at, and contemplating why he was there. He stated that as he sat there, suddenly his father showed up from out of no where. Grandpa said that Grandaddy was much younger than he appeared when he was alive, but that he was dressed in a dark business suit which was how he dressed in life. Grandpa said that he was thrilled to see his father and that he stood up and walked towards him and when they met, they greeted each other warmly; both glad to be together. Grandpa asked his father, "Dad what are you doing here?

Granddaddy responded, "I've come to tell you to stop grieving over my death and to help you get on with your life.! Grandpa had never admitted to grieving over the death of his father to me before, but while telling me the story he admitted that he had felt very despondent at times after Granddady died. Grandpa went on to say that he and Grandaddy had a good conversation and Grandpa said that he had the feeling that his father had had to travel a great distance to be with him there in the garden.

One of the questions he asked his father was whether or not people who had died could hear us talking on earth. Grandaddy told him, "Of course we can hear you, but why in the hell would anyone want to hear what you say! Your voices sound very coarse and gravely to us and who wants to listen to that?" Grandpa further stated that Grandaddy explained a lot of things to him, and answered many of his questions, but that sadly he could not remember all of the conversation they had.

Grandpa said that it seemed as though they were together talking for a long time. Grandpa told me that when he woke up from the dream, that he felt very re-newed by their conversation and that he had lost the sense of despondency he had felt before the communication, and of course it gave him hope that there was life after death. I was very touched that my grandfather told me this very personal story, and it is the only time I can remember him crying, as he cried the whole time he talked to me.