This post was originally written in August 2009. Since then God has healed my heart and made some drastic changes. He wants to heal your heart too. 

Interesting question. I believe the answer is yes. I believe I saw it first hand.
My grandfather passed away on August 15. He was 84. Yes, he was old. Yes, he had been sick. Yes, his cancer was back. But I believe he died from a weakened heart.  I believe he gave up because he felt lost.

His favorite word was “cotton pickin”. He loved barbecue and fish. He loved to sit on his porch swing and watch the squirrels play in the yard. He loved to ride around town in his electric wheelchair. Yes, my grandpa was an All-American, true blooded redneck. He was proud of it too. He wore overalls and used to smoke like a freight train. He fought in WWII and didn’t talk about it much.

He had many skeletons in his closet, and a lot of them he didn’t talk about. One of those skeletons was alcohol. It controlled him for many years. They say alcoholism can be hereditary.  I wouldn’t believe it if I hadn’t watched it be passed on before my very eyes. My aunts, my uncles, my cousins, and my dad; it took over their lives. It took over my grandpa’s too. But I still loved him.

When my dad died in February, so did my grandpa’s heart. His eyes died. His emotions died. His smile died. I could see it on his face the last time I told him goodbye. Six months later he is gone.

Could I have helped mend his broken heart? Was I too scared to acknowledge his sadness because I was to engulfed in mine? I guess we’ll never know.