A Tribute to Glen Larsen | Whitney Beth Photography
In the quiet hours of the morning on Saturday, the 30th, my sweet Grandpa returned to heaven. There was never a more selfless, kind man. I called him Bapa. Bapa had a way of making all his grandchildren feel like they were extra special. I'm the oldest grandkid and for the first handful of years of my life I was over at their house every day. Bapa had his own business and employed both of my parents and cycled through a lot of my aunts and uncles too. He called my grandma, Honey. Since I was the only kid around, I thought that was her name and for as long as I can remember, my grandma has been, Hunny (spelled like Pooh Bear's honey.) Remembering my grandpa brings up many fond memories. When they would load the truck for deliveries, he always had time to give me a ride on the dolly. My grandpa loved snacks, especially peanuts, walnuts, cashews, etc. One of our favorite things to do was to crack open walnuts, give grandpa the nut to eat (I see now that this was a sneaky way to getting the grandkids to crack the shells. haha!) and then glue in a toothpick with a paper sail attached to it. Once we had enough boats for everyone we'd sail them in the bathtub full of water. There were always three things you were guaranteed to find at my Grandpa's house; pop, ice cream, and toilet paper. Whenever he'd go to the store, he'd always come back with one, if not all three of those things.
My Grandpa is superman. He had Rheumatic Fever when he was 12. He got it while on his paper route during winter in Orem, Utah. He fell into an icy, water filled irrigation ditch. Instead of going straight home, he finished his route. (That's just the kind of person he is.) He was later hospitalized for 6 months because of it. In the early 70's, Bapa was only 33 and was one of the first people to have an artificial valve put in. (Star Edward Valve.) 15 years later, in '89 he would go in to have his aortic valve replaced. I spent my first birthday visiting Bapa in the hospital when he had his stroke. With his valve replacements, his heart ticked. You could hear it if you were in the room. We loved playing hide and seek with Bapa because we could just listen for him. Throughout all of this, I never remember hearing him complain. Later in life, Bapa started to develop Dementia.
In March of 2014, while sitting in my documentary photography class I got this overwhelming feeling that my final needed to be about Bapa. Danny and I drove up during my spring break so that I could photograph Bapa. We were there for three days. This trip was the last time I can remember having lucid and fluid conversations with my grandpa. I took pictures of him with all the things that were special to him and me, I let him show me pictures, tell me stories and just soaked up every ounce of Bapa I could. I knew I wanted a nice portrait of him in the front room, sitting at the piano. He would often go up there and start plucking away at the keys. Bapa was the best pharmaceutical rep and was awarded best salesmen year after year. He loved his pool table. I can remember many days spent in there with him. My cousins, siblings and I loved laying underneath the table in our "fort" while he and my uncles played a game of pool above our heads. My uncle rob got my grandpa an electric stair chair so that he could ride down to the garage. He fought using that thing for as long as he could. Ever the opportunistic entrepreneur, if you were sitting next to Bapa it was only a matter of time when he'd lean forward and say, "Hey, scratch my back." This man had probably the biggest collection of back scratchers given to him from wishful grandkids trying to get out of scratching his back, but he still preferred a "hands on" approach.
There is so much to say about my grandpa, he was kind, loving, strong, and full of life. Towards the end, when speaking was hard, you could see and feel his love for you in his eyes. One of my precious memories is introducing Bapa to his great-grandsons. Bapa loved babies and you could just feel the love radiating off of him as he met Jones and Fields. This last trip to Oregon in July was full of tender moments. Hunny told me that she had walked in on Jones talking to Bapa multiple times and saying that he loved him. Seeing Bapa smile and chuckle at Fields while he had the hiccups and watching that spark come back for a brief moment is something I will treasure forever. But the most tender and emotional moment of Bapa's passing for me was having a scene flash before my eyes. In it my Bapa walked straight and proud, arms outstretched as he was welcomed home and greeted by my babies in Heaven. This image of Bapa hugging Peyton and Banks and being led by the hand towards a crowd of waiting family fills my soul with hope and joy. I know he's happy and home. Joyfully being reunited with family and looking on and watching over us. Love you Bapa, until we meet again.
