My grandfather, Thomas Erskine, died this morning.
These are some things I remember when I think about him.
Back on June 20th of this year we all went to visit him.
We took pictures and it was clear he enjoyed the energy The Mermaids brought to his place that day.
Even then he was waxing poetic saying what a good life he had; and he was right.
One of his favorite stories to relate (about me) was the time I volunteered that my name was Shawn to a salesperson. He frequently called me Shawn with a glimmer in his eye…probably even on that day last June.
He also liked to talk about how he would walk the railroad tracks at lunch over to our house to see me as a newborn. He would hold me, during lunch he said, on his lap until I fell asleep.
When I was older and laying on the floor watching something on TV at his house, he would reach down and grab and hold my fingers with a crazy strength in his toes.
In one of my earlier memories I recall how he would blow magnificent smoke rings from his cigar so my brother and I could poke our fingers through them.
He used to accuse me of not having washed my face when I didn’t shave and I still remember the night the men in the family played poker (for $2) and watched a Stag movie (Hunting the White Tailed deer…all 30 minutes of it) because he didn’t have a bachelor party when he was married.
He had an incredibly firm handshake, sometimes painfully so.
I think everyone who met him remembers that.
blief 
Yes, I vividly remember the firm handshake! Yes it could hurt when you weren’t expecting it!
I liked the story about the “bachelor party” and the “Stag Movie”! Ha! ha! Fond and lasting memories are made of such incidents.
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Everytime he saw Emily he said “there’s the girl with the long, thin, face!!”
It’s never far to the home of a friend.
(to me) “Daddy, do ya?” I evidently asked him this when I was about 2 or 3, it means ‘Daddy do you love me?’ He actually always said this to me everytime we parted, but changed it to “Margy do ya?”
That Bachelor party was an inspiration and Mom finally got her bridal shower along with lovely, girly gifts. We had such fun planning these and they were both touched.
Thanks Lief!! Just when I thought I was all cried out!
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The joy in your face when you are looking at Dad is priceless. He adored you from day one. We heard stories about Liefy Duff as long as I can remember. When the mermaids came along he was thrilled.
Thanks for the walk down memory lane.
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Yes, your grandpa Erskine had a firm handshake, but an even more assertive personality. Thankfully he was also friendly, or I would not have been able to drum up the courage to ask him for permission to marry his daughter.
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