My grandfather had huge hands, as he was a big man. One of my earliest memories is him palming me like a basketball, and then lifting me onto his lap so that I could steer and shoot as we played as we played Star Wars: X-Wing (1993). Just like me, my grandfather dropped out of university on his first try, and joined the Navy near the end of the Korean War. It was in the Navy that he learned of his own aptitude for electronics, serving as a radioman in the North Atlantic and (secretly) near the Arctic Circle. He learned that when handling electronics, his large hands weren't a hindrance: he was a precise man, and his fingers were steady. Just like me, when he returned to university on the GI Bill, he found his true calling. He became an electrical engineer, earned his Masters, and went to work for Texas Instruments for 31 years. It was there that his steady and precise hands and mind went on to help create things that you, dear reader, have benefitted from or used personally: the iconic TI-83 calculator, anti-radar HARM missiles, ground following radar, heat-seeking missiles that preceded the modern Patriot missile systems that today defend Ukraine and Israel, and several other projects that remain classified to this day. When his advanced dementia necessitated in-home care, my father moved his father from Dallas to Houston to be nearer to his doctors. We cleaned out my grandfather's old house, which gave a window into his life that I'd never been offered: handmade processors the size of your cell phone, a kings ransom in precision tools, gadgets and tech of his own design with wildly varying practicalities and form factors that all shared one quality: handmade precision. My grandfathers hands swallowed up the rings he wore, but he never used those hands for anything more than emphasis when interacting with others. He was a patient, loving, and quiet man who valued personal integrity, his Jewish faith, and his family. He even raised Pekingese with his wife, his hands an amusing contrast with the tiny dogs he held. He could give you what felt like a full body hug just by squeezing your shoulder. My grandfather passed away last weekend at a Father's Day dinner with his son. He was 91, and lived a full life with three (Eagle Scout) sons: a doctor, a particle physics PhD, and a businessman, who collectively raised his 7 grandchildren. He was a veteran, a prodigy, an inventor, a mentor, and a thousand other things to more people than I could count, things that will be sorely missed. But most of all, I'll miss his hands.
Sydney Rodman
1mo
May his memory be for a blessing🕯️✡️ זייל
Richard Ross
1mo
May his memory be for a blessing.
Amit Chawla
1mo
Deepest condolences to you and your family for your loss 🙏
Please accept my deepest condolences. 🙏
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1moWhat a wonderful tribute! My condolences. Most of my memories of my grandfather were around his hands also. I spent a lot of time sitting with him, reading or playing chess, and poking at the big veins on the backs of his hands. I miss him too, a lot