Who is the Tallest Person You Know?

The tallest person I have ever known was my Grandpa Ed. He was very tall and very lanky. My brothers all took after him but I didn’t. I took after the Boucher  women (my maternal grandmother’s side of the family). I am curvy. I have never been lanky. My entire life, it seems, I have always been awkwardly curvy.

My Grandpa Ed liked to drink. We would go visit their old yellow house and he would take my dad, and later my step-dad, out to the back porch where he kept the whiskey. They would stay out there for a while shooting the breeze.

When he drank he would tell stories and he would get very loud.  I think I have taken on this trait.  I’m pretty sure I am a loud talker when I drink and am telling a story. I want everyone to hear me, as I’m sure Grandpa Ed did.

One story that sticks out in my mind is the story of how he met my Grandma. He told that story several times, each time with the same vigor.They met at a dance when they were in their early twenties. This was in the 1920s, the flapper era. My Granny Mary was beautiful. She had a short flapper-style bob, dark brown eyes, and the curvy Boucher body.

My grandpa fell instantly in love with her and wanted to dance with her but she was on a date with another man. My Grandpa Ed didn’t like this. One thing led to another and he got in a fight with the other guy; and won the heart of my grandmother. When Grandpa Ed told this story my Granny Mary would have a twinkle in her eye and teasingly chime in, “And I was having such a lovely time with that guy, too!” He would give her a big kiss and hold her tightly and say, “I still love this woman after 50 years!” He really did. It was sweet.