That photo is from the bottom of the Grand Canyon, near Phantom Ranch (Christmas 2006). That totally rocking beard is what likely caused nearly every hiker who came near me or passed me during the arduous climb-out, from Indian Garden up to the South Rim, to kindly ask, "Are you okay?" Although I was the last of my hiking companions to finally reach the rim that day, I was okay when the waitress at the Bright Angel Restaurant asked, "Which side dish would you like with that?" I replied, "All of them."
My grandson was born in 2007. At that time, I sported just the mustache that you still see today. While he and, later, his sister were still young, I decided not to alter Pappaw's appearance. Now that they are in their teens, I've grown way too old for this old dog to relearn an old trick. (Large beards are messy, and require fancy napkin work at meals, as well as regular combing and shampooing. A hefty sneeze can become a crisis moment. And once wet, they stay that way for a long, long time, without a hair-dryer.)
Bob
