Confessions two

[Lord Magus]

(I may have posted this before... but I can't remember, and onehung's post reminded me of it)
I never EVER knew my mother's father, though I used to always wear a medal of his when I was very little.
He flew in World War 2. He was hospitalized with some brain disease or something along those lines, anyway, he had been unable to speak anything other than gibberish for years.
One night when I was in my mid-teens (14-16 I think) my mom was speaking to him in the hospital over the phone. I guess it was just a keep in touch thing, I don't know if he understood everything people said and just couldn't form words, though I think he could. Anyway, my mom comes downstairs with the phone in her hand balling her eyes out and tells me to speak with my grandfather for a few minutes. This man literally makes less sense then someone mumbling in their sleep, there isn't ANYTHING recognizable as a word in what he speaks. Anyway, I essentially hold a one sided conversation with a man I've never met or spoken too for about 5 minutes.. a really uncomfortable five minutes, and hand him back to mom. When she gets done talking to him I ask her why she was crying when she gave me the phone.
She tells me she said "Dad I'm going to put Adam on the phone for a few minutes now, would you like that?" (I gather he wasn't hospitalized until after I was born, so at least knew who I was) and who hasn't been able to speak a single word in ten years says, clear as day,
"Adam on the phone"

Now that I think about it... I know I've posted it before.. but I haven't shared this
Something about that event touched me in ways I still don't fully understand.
I do know that it's left a mark on me psychologicly.. that someone whom I've never met can fight through whatever disease has kept him from speaking for years to say my name makes me wonder what I might ever do to deserve such respect, love, or effort.. it's hard to put into words what I feel about that event...