Bush died on Friday. He was 94.
Jenna Bush Hager is looking back at the life and legacy of her grandfather, former president George H.W. Bush.
The politician, who served as the 41st president of the United States from 1989 to 1993, died on Friday, seven months after his wife, Barbara Bush, died at age 92. On Saturday morning, Jenna reflected on her time with her grandfather, while sharing sweet throwback pics.
"Waking up missing this giant of a man who gave me everything," Jenna captioned a slideshow of herself and twin sister -- also named Barbara Bush -- with Bush. "He taught me and my family about service, family, decency, the power of gentle words and a beautiful heart. I will miss him desperately but so happy he and my Grandmother are back together."
Jenna also shared a caricature of Bush and his wife reunited in Heaven, alongside their late daughter Robinson "Robin" Bush. She was the couple's second oldest child, but died of leukemia at age 3 in 1953.
"I had the opportunity to talk with my grandpa about the afterlife," Jenna wrote. "This is what he said: He answered without any hesitation. 'Yes, I think about it. I used to be afraid. I used to be scared of dying. I used to worry about death. But now in some ways I look forward to it.' And I started crying."
"I managed to choke out, 'Well, why? What do you look forward to?'" she continued "And he said, 'Well, when I die, I'm going to be reunited with these people that I've lost.' And I asked who he hoped to see. He replied, 'I hope I see Robin, and I hope I see my mom. I haven't yet figured it out if it will be Robin as the three year old that she was, this kind of chubby, vivacious child or if she'll come as a middle-aged woman, an older woman.' And then he said, 'I hope she's the three-year-old.'"
"Robin was the daughter this giant of a man lost years before to leukemia," Jenna concluded. "The little girl he held tightly: who spoke the phrase I have heard Gampy repeat for my entire life, forever knitting Robin's voice into the tightly woven fabric of our family: 'I love you more than tongue can tell.'"
Jenna's father, former president George W. Bush, issued a statement on his father's death on Friday night. "Jeb, Neil, Marvin, Doro, and I are saddened to announce that after 94 remarkable years, our dear Dad has died," he said. "George H. W. Bush was a man of the highest character and the best dad a son or daughter could ask for. The entire Bush family is deeply grateful for 41's life and love, for the compassion of those who have cared and prayed for Dad, and for the condolences of our friends and fellow citizens."
Former president Barack Obama and current president Donald Trump also remembered Bush.
And in a statement released on Saturday, Queen Elizabeth II looked back at her meetings with Bush. "It was with sadness that I learned of the death of President George H W Bush last night," she said. "President Bush was a great friend and ally of the United Kingdom. He was also a patriot, serving his country with honour and distinction in Office and during the Second World War. Prince Philip and I remember our days in Texas in 1991 with great fondness. My thoughts and prayers are with President Bush’s family and the American people.”
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