Believe

You ever just have that person in your life? Could be a family member, a mentor, a coach, a loved one. Someone who has impacted your life more than you can ever imagine or sometimes even more than words can describe. To me, and especially if you know me or been around me, my person was (and still is) my Papa.

Papa - my grandpa Altmann. Was one of my most favorite people on this whole world. He could do anything you wanted him to. He would always have stories to tell. He would always be the first to start poking your buttons - always start trouble (but then immediately get you out of it). Knew what to say at the right times but also crack jokes at the wrong times (just to see you smile). He knew how to live life the way I always think it should be lived. And the one thing my Papa did more than anyone I’ve ever known, is make EVERYONE feel like family. No matter who you were - a neighbor, friend of a friend, kid on the block, co-worker, etc. - to Papa you were family. And that meant no matter what: you were greeted with a high five, a handshake that shook your whole arm, and a hug that made you feel like every time you belonged.

Papa taught me so many things in my life. And like I said before he had story after story to tell us. These stories were life lessons and little “Papa-isms” he would say all the time. Some of these included: It is what it is...(Poop) or get off the pot (Said sometimes in a little more colorful language)....and my personal favorite - You can pick your friends, but your friends can’t pick your nose. I could go on and on about these stories and times I got to share with Papa. How every time I saw him he snuck a dollar in my pocket and told me to “shhhh”. How every time I drove with him he would have to clear the coffee cups and newspapers off the front seat and we would listen to his favorite songs WAYYYYY too loud. How you could never go to a game or event and not have ice cream AND a souvenir. How he could tell me my stats of every baseball game I played and seeing him in the front row of every bleacher just to be closer to the field to watch me do what I love.

I think of the moments too that I know he would have loved to share with me and every member of our family. To have had him here for my time to play in college, or watch me play my first ever game in pro ball. To see him on the family vacations, or just sitting down at the dinner table with you because he knew you were home. More times to have him over and joke with the family, more times to play Scrabble (QI is a word, and watch us kick all our butts), more time to make us laugh until we cry. Times we would leave restaurants or places with a spoon, or salt shaker in your jacket pocket just to feel it when you were halfway home and wonder how it got there (only to see Papa bent over in laughter in the back seat). He was special in many many ways, and I hope that if you ever got a chance to meet him in my life, you could really feel how special he was to everyone!

But this story I am about to tell, means more to me than any other....

Believe. This word means everything to me. So much so, I have it tattooed on my arm. The reason it’s there is for a variety of reasons, but this is there mostly because of Papa. Papa always told me this - Believe in yourself, believe in what you do, believe in those people around you, believe believe believe. It was really just something we would say to one another. Before games, before school, it was our thing. And over the years it sort of became a family thing. But I will never forget when Papa got sick, when the strongest man I was ever around started to lose some of that strength in the high fives, some of that strength in the handshakes that shook your whole arm, and even in those hugs that always reminded you that you were right there with him. When Papa and I had one of our final conversations before he passed. The LAST thing he told me was to Believe. He didn’t tell me to believe in a certain thing, but to just Believe. So now, in my life I hear those words over and over. I think of this moment so many times, hearing that word and feeling his hand grip mine.

It is a strong word - Believe. From one of the strongest men I have in my life. It means the world to me and just thinking today on Papa’s birthday that this would be more time I would have loved to spend with him. But now, as I write this with a little tear in my eye. I know for a fact I have an angel watching down over me, reminding me every single day to do one thing.....BELIEVE