I didn't meet my darling, darling grandfather until I was 9 years old. Though born in this country, and I'd obviously met him then, at two and half my parents started on our treks around the world. So I didn't 'know' him until we returned from Canada in 1953. I remember getting off the boat train from Liverpool and standing amongst our piles of luggage when two people hurled themselves at my mother.They hadn't seen her for 7 years. It was my grandparents, her parents, I remember Poppy [as we called him] standing tall, elegant, friendly, looking at me with his bright blue Irish eyes and said 'dearest do you remember me? I didn't but fell in love with him then and it went on until he died in 1986.
He was everything my father wasn't - loving, fun, interesting, helpful etc etc. My fathers father died before the war and his mother lived in Australia [too long a story there] I didn't meet her until my father's funeral in 1965.
Now my two GD's have 2 grandads - my ex who lives in Florida and my DIL's who lives close by to me, with his wife. They adore their mother's father, he is a quiet man but very gentle and affectionate - to see his expression when he sees his two little GDs is wonderful.