Reconciliation

Everyone talks in hushed tones. Its a little hypnotizing like the bees buzzing, but this is not a happy occasion. And yet, I occasionally hear people's quiet laughter. My grandfather was a funny man too. He was a stubborn man, but no one can fault his sense of humor. I have often wondered why his humor never made him forgiving. He always said he believed in 3 chances for a person- the first to recover from his mistake, the second to see where the situation goes in case of deliberate doing and the third would ensure that they never would be in the situation again, because life would drastically change after that. Well this was pretty deep things to tell a 10 yr old that had just stolen a cookie. I always asked him for one after that.
I came to live with him after my parents decided that they wanted to go their separate ways and that I would be a burden. He took me in and brought me up. Saw to it that he never repeated the mistakes he did with my father. I was well fed, well cared for and I lived in a cheerful household.
I don't quite remember what set it off. I was 21 and hot blooded. I thought I knew things that he did not. He did not see it my way. I left in the middle of night. He tried calling me up. 3 times. And left it at that. I did too..
Its been 15 years and I got a call saying my grandfather passed away. After his funeral, I was handed a package by his best friend. He still wore the friendship band my grandpa gave him when they were in first grade. And in the package were stacks of letters. Letters about things he never told me, things that I thought he did not know.
Letters dating from 15 years ago...letters that he never sent.