Earlier this year as I was settling into mybed (streaming a random Fresh Prince of Bel Air episode), I received the most daunting phone call of my life. My hero – My grandfather Mr. Anant Jasbhai Patel who I was very close to passed away.

The harsh reality reminded me that in trying times, people are your comfort – and for me – my family was (is).

Despite the fact that I miss him dearly every single day, the haunted truth changed my life – not for the better but for the different.

FAMILY

My appreciation for family has always been there, but the 12 days spent in Kenya was a solid reminder in disguise that I do NEED my family and the love that I took for granted; is unconditional.

It had been decades since the immediate family was in one city at the same time, for a period of more than 16 hours a day spent together – It felt nice. The small confined space on the dining table that catered for 6 sat 13 and the traditional sofa time in the evening (including the nature of the conversations that took place) reminded me of my childhood. I felt the happiness in my inner soul – that of an unexposed ignorant child.

I noticed that I moved away from our ‘grown up’ lifestyle and adapted to the one I had when I was younger. The protected, the carefree. I knew that this was the doing of my grandfather.  He kept the family so close and taught/showed us that blood is thicker than water.

As the days passed, over 500 people graced us with their presence and paid their respects. People who I had never seen, people from HIS early days, the brothers of the men that worked for him, the wives of his past business partners and the children of the children that he had worked for – You know he shared his love and time with everyone. He was a good man.  No discrimination; he believed in good, hard work, truth, passion and even in his drama mama moments – strength.

I still find it hard to digest the concept of his depart, but if it weren’t for this horrific event, I wouldn’t have experienced the aftermath. The Ying Yang; his parting for a simple strong legacy – ‘Don’t look at my structure, see my spirit‘ – Which is exactly how I intend to live from now on forward.