I was glued to my TV and it looked like he looked at me and said
"Best start putting first things first."
Cause when your hourglass runs out of sand
You can't flip over and start again
Take every breathe God gives you for what it's worth
Kenny Chesney “Don’t Blink”

I was only sixteen. I didn't know the concept of growing old yet. I thought everyone lived a happy life until they passed away. I always watched the happy fairy tell stories on TV but there was always the emotional ones too. I remember watching an emotional movie about a loved one passing away. I just didn't ever see it happening to me. I knew everyone had to pass away but I didn't know why, how or even when.
Everything was just a daze and I was in a really bad dream.I was just starting out my life and the closest thing I had to me was my grandpa. Of course I had my other family but I wasn't as close to them as I was to my grandpa. I just never got along with my family like I did with my grandpa. We had that special bond, he took me in as his own daughter.
He wasn't just my grandpa, he was my best friend.  He always told me to put first things first, That before I knew it time would run out. I didn't understand exactly what this meant at this time. I never even thought about it much, it was just a saying that didn't concern me at the time. I thought I'm still 16 I have my entire life ahead. I'm indestructible. I didn't realize everything that he was telling me was such important life advice. If I would've not taken it so lightly maybe I could of been prepared more for life.
I had my special routine everyday after school. I always went to my grandpa's first thing after school. I walk to the front door and he is always sitting on the front porch swing. I always join him on the front porch swing. Even know I feel like it will break when I sit on it. It's so old and brittle. I asked him what he thought about the news today right after the stray cat walked up. Which I guess now she is not a stray, I feed her and take her to the vet just like my own. She is missing a ear, probably from a cat fight but she is so sweet. Me and my grandpa named her Black cat.
We went into the house and talked more about school. He would help me with my homework if I needed it. Even know he wasn't a fan of math he would still help me. I didn't struggle in math but I figured it was good for both of us to do my homework. After that we would bake something everyday no matter what. It would always be cookies or something fruity. I love fruit more than anything and he always stocked the fridge with fruit just for me.
My grandma worked a lot so she wasn't always there. She always tried her best to come see us but she was a nurse and it felt like she was always on call. We always left her leftovers when we baked. She didn't really like deserts but she would eat them because she knew it made me happy. I was close to my grandma but it was hard to ever see her. I understood she had to help people and couldn't be home all the time. I never did complain because my grandpa took care of me. But tonight she managed to come home early. She took me home and told me she would try to see me tomorrow after school. She said after work she would have a few things to do but it shouldn't take long. I said that was fine and I didn't ask what she had to do. She kissed me on the cheek and told me to be good for my parents. I said I always am grandma! She said I know goodnight sweetie. I shut the door and went inside.
I woke up the next day and it was my normal routine. Get up, get ready, Go see my grandpa, and go home. I walked to go see my grandpa right after school, like any other day. I was really excited to tell him about my day. I ran up to the door and I was struggling to open the door. I realized the door was locked. That was unusual for my grandpa, he always expected me after school. He always left the door open for me and he usually is on the front porch. He wasn't there and it was strange. I called for him and rung the doorbell. There was no answer. I had a bad feeling in my stomach. I knew something was terribly wrong. I had no form of communication. I didn't have a cell phone or any way to get a hold of my family.
So I began to get worried and I remembered I had a spare key. I hadn't used a spare key in forever. I thought I lost it! I begun to search for the key. I searched in my backpack and everywhere in my school supplies. It was gone, I just couldnt remember. I knew I had it, I just didn't know where? So I sat down and thought. I had already knocked on the door a billion times. There was no answer. I was worried but I had no other options but to find the key he gave me along time ago. After about ten minutes went by of still looking and thinking. My grandpa pulled up!
I said where have you been! I couldn't find my spare key and I thought you were hurt! He begun to tell me that he was sorry that he had a doctor's appointment. He asked me what the look of disappointment was on my face for? I just told him I was scared and didn't know where he was. I asked him why didn't you tell me you were gonna go to the doctors office? He said it was a surprise thing. Not even he knew, they called him this morning. I asked what did they want? He told me that we would talk about that at the end of the day.
He said are you ready to make cookies? I said quietly yes. Honestly I was thinking no I want to talk about why you had to go to the doctors office. I knew he wouldn't tell me till the end of the day. I wondered if he went there because of my grandma. I just stayed quiet and washed my hands and got out the ingredients. The whole time I was wondering and thinking of all the possible reasons. There was not any, I knew he was healthy and so was grandma. After making cookies, I asked again and he said wait till later. I got upset and said why not now? He explained it was a hard subject to explain and he didn't know how to tell me. I said just spit it out! I can take it. He said not right now, I promise to tell you later.
An hour later and still nothing. It was time to go home. Grandma got home and she was crying and she went straight to her room. I didn't know what was going on. Grandpa told me it was time to talk and he needed to be honest about some things. I listened very carefully because I knew it was serious. He told me he had stage four cancer and he would have to go to a nursing home. I said “no I can take care of you, you can't leave me”. He said “you can visit me anytime you want and grandma will be here after school to see you”. Grandma interrupted and said it was getting late and she needed to take me home. I was crying and just shook my head. I knew everything was changing. I didn't know what to expect.
I started going to the nursing home after school and taking care of my grandpa. It was hard for me to see him like that. I knew he wasn't happy. I tried doing things for him, I continued to bake and bring him everything I baked. It wasn't as good without his help but it was something at least. It was about four weeks of him being in the nursing home when things got bad. Everyone warned me to prepare myself even he did. He told me he loved me and that he would still watch over me. I had tears running down the side of my face when I kissed his cheek and told him goodnight. The next morning he passed away. It was the hardest thing I ever had to go through. I had never been to a funeral and I thought I would never have too. At Least not for a family member.
I was laying in bed the night before the funeral when I remembered him saying Best start putting first things first. Cause when your hourglass runs out of sand You can't flip over and start again and take every breathe God gives you for what it's worth. I just didn't understand what he meant before, but in a second I did. I began to shut my eyes and pray to God. I told God to please tell my grandpa that I needed him back and I missed him. I started to realize things get taken away from you, despite the time or the reason. After this I thanked God for all the special moments I did get with my grandpa. After this I started to realize that anything can happen in just a blink and after that you can flip over the hourglass and start over again. It was exactly what my grandpa told me, I finally understood.