I consider myself to be one of the luckiest people on the Earth. I’m not talking about “winning the lottery” kind of lucky. I’m lucky because God gave me the best grandparents a girl could ask for. I have a grandma that would pick me up from school everyday, rain or shine, and a grandpa that could make you laugh so much that his nickname was “Silly Grandpa”. My grandparents have played an important part in my life, so much so, that I consider them to be my second parents. They instilled the values that made me who I am today.
My grandparents taught me how to work hard and to always work to the best of my ability in everything I do. They taught me this through example. My grandpa was a truck driver, who drove long hours, but never let it affect his attitude. I don’t have a single memory of him being upset or in a bad mood. Even if he was, he would never let it show. My grandma always taught me to be tough as nails. She helped me deal with everything from a scraped knee to childhood bullies. I could write an 100,000 word paper on everything they taught me, but for the sake of the reader, I’ll keep it short.
There is no one in the world that could replace my grandparents, and I genuinely hope that every kid gets to grow up with grandparents like mine. The ones that don’t just see you at Christmas, but everyday. The ones that show up unannounced just to give you something they saw at the store because it reminded them of you. The ones that will go out to dinner with you on short notice just to talk about your day. Most importantly, the ones that make you feel truly loved. There’s a Dan + Shay song that goes, “Grandma and Grandpa painted a picture of 65 years in one little house, more than a memory, more than saying I do..” this is what my grandparents gave to me. They showed me what love truly is in the time we spent together, and for that I am eternally grateful.