What's in a name?

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for a brief fast forward to present time. Join us now as we step inside the brains of our present day blogger in mid thought....
So I was taking a shower, trying to take off the chill and wind down from a long day and my thoughts were bouncing all over the place as the decompression began to take hold. As they do many nights during the decompression period, my thoughts drifted to my grandparents. Sometimes I am still mentally checking off the " to do list" for things that need to be taken care of, other times I am feeling sorry for them, but tonight, as many nights, I just contemplated who they are and what their lives have been. Being their caretaker the last several years, I have have had the distinct opportunity to get to know both of them on an entirely different level than any of the other grandchildren. That's not to say their relationships are not unique nor any less significant, rather that, as a caretaker, I have had to step out of the grandchild role and into the shoes of a parental role with both of them as time has progressed.
I have become particularly endeared to my grandfather since this change in relationship has taken place, more so than when I was just playing the role of granddaughter. I began to know him more as a person and not just as my papaw.
Be it by grace, genetics or both, I've discovered that my good nature and optimism come from him. In the time that I have taken care of him, he has faced some enormous changes and tragedies and yet never let life take him down too far. No matter the circumstances he's faced, he has always leaned back on his faith and plugged forward with the intent that God knew what He was doing. He has always made a point of showing gratitude and is cognisant of the time and energy that I spend helping both of them. He has been the single most stable and influencing male role model throughout my life.
As our relationship has grown and changed, and in the absence of my mother, he has crowned me with a bittersweet treasure that I hold so very close to my heart. As long as I can remember, his pet name for mom has always been "sug" ( pronounced shug). In the last year, somehow, I have adopted this name from him and it still makes my heart skip a beat whenever he addresses me as "sug." It instaneously makes me feel so special and cherished and yet it evokes a pang of deep longing for the one that brought me into this world . I consider it a great honor that he has chosen to pass along such an exceptionally personal term of endearment to me.
May we always stop and enjoy the small moments in life that make it so sweet.