Well... I should do this. It's a week old, but it's... more appropriate now.

Grandpa,

It's been 10 years, to the day. 10 years without you. 10 years with one less person at Grandma's house. 10 years wondering what it would be like if you were still here.

For a decade now, that word... that word that defines your fate, your murderer... it still makes me squirm. Makes me writhe where I sit. Gave me a hatred for that word... cancer.

So much has changed since you left. Mom and dad added 2 more members to the family. One of them named after you, in a way. We're not in the same home; heck, we've moved twice. And, though I'll probably never be like you, I'm taller than a lot of people my age.

Still just as enthusiastic about reading, and learning. Getting closer to my goals, and while they may not include a thesis on 'The Strength of Graphite Apoxy Laminate Panels with Drilled Elliptical Holes', I know I can do it.

Sometimes I wonder, well, what you'd think of me now. I'm no longer the innocent young child I once was. While I'm definitely smarter and wittier, I'm not exactly good at holding my tongue, and turned my back on religion (or are trying to, parents make that a bit hard).

But, nevertheless... I'll never forget you. That cornfield maze the month before, watching that awful movie, Doogal/The Magic Roundabout, and later on, finding your old floppy disks. Still trying to get to a way to read the information on them. Thinking that maybe, in a way, I'll find something that makes you a ghost in the machine.

Something to preserve your memory for me, for mom, for grandma, for everyone else. Here's hoping.

See you on the other side,
Kilian