I've never met my paternal grandfather. He'd passed away before my parents even met.
For more than half of my life I only saw a painting of him. Not a very good one, I might add.
People says he looked a bit like one of my uncles.
Then one night in the cold low land in 2006, I googled him.
There it was, flashing on my screen, his first ever picture I'd seen.
When my dad visited me, I showed him that picture. He'd never seen it.
Tonight, I did the same thing, I googled him.
Guess what? I found another picture but I couldn't find that previous one.
This time I saw part of him in my dad.
The wonder of internet, because of it one gets to see one late grandfather 'new' picture!
Interesting post. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteIt's moving and wonderful.
ReplyDeleteDid your grandfather spent time in the Lowlands? (Though I know Google doesn't mind geography, you did hit upon his first photo in the Low lands after all.)
By the way.. My paternal grandmother died long before I was born. And there were only one or two photos ( I still have one by the way). But, I've to confess I never developed any warm emotional feelings towards her. Just a name.
I wonder is it a nasty character flaw of mine to be emotionally blank towards relatives I've never known, or is it just human?
@Setyo-Utomo thanks!
ReplyDelete@Colson He didnt but he went to AMS Batavia. Like you, I dont have any emotional connection, in fact my dad talked little about him. The first time I googled him was after I met this guy who knew him and said his role model was my grandfather... he told me to write about him. I couldnt tell the guy that he knew more than I did! I do how ever have this curiosity about my maternal great grandmother, but that's another story. :D