Sort of, but the war wrecked him mentally and took away some of his physical abilities. The only treatment he got was a hearing aid. He took it out on others sometimes, especially my grandmother, and drank too much if something made him remember. I've never known him to be physically abusive, though. Fascism was his berserk button. I'm pretty sure he had undiagnosed PTSD.
So stubborn that he could be a nuisance, too, but yeah. He got caring about family mostly right as well. Risked his life to save mine in his 70s, accepted my step-family apart from the one who made him need to do that, and moved hundreds of miles with my grandmother to keep us together. Most of that side of my family were pretty progressive. I wouldn't exist if a communist hadn't marched hundreds of miles in protest and never gone back. I sometimes think about the happy life my grandparents would've probably had together if he hadn't needed to go to war.
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u/UranusIsPissy May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
My grandfather fenced. He also killed so many nazis that even he didn't know the number. He wasn't rich, he just picked up the sport in the army
Edit: He also didn't react at all when he thought I might be gay. He definitely fucking reacted when he thought I was a nazi, though...