The Long-Distance Grandfather

What does it mean to be a grandfather? I don't remember hearing a question of that kind when I was growing up. Grandfathers existed, however they didn't live to an old age, in general. But now in an era where life expectancy has increased dramatically, I think that an answer is both merited and timely. Not that there aren't books, blogs and Facebook pages that embrace the topic; you can probably find plenty of those. However, my wish is to give a personal response, with a little help from my friends, as you will discover.