"Spoil them good, then send them home."
This was the message written on the outside of a card given to my grandparents when I was little and it pretty much summarizes all of the time that I spent with my grandparents. Time at their house is always filled with fun, laughter and ice cream.
Grandparent's Day was September 13th, so here is a list of five reasons to be grateful for your grandparents:
1. They support everything you do.
No one is more supportive of you than your grandparents. It doesn't matter what you are doing; be it soccer or dance, theater or academics. Your grandparents believe unreservedly that you have the potential to be the best. They may not fully understand what an SAT or AP test is, but they know that you can ace it.
2. They make you feel like a technological genius.
If there is one thing that grandparents are notorious for its being bad with technology. But that's what they have you for, right? From showing them how to use their new smart phone to explaining the concept and workings of Facebook to them, they can be frustratingly clueless. However, when you start explaining things to them they are so appreciative and amazed by your ability to seemingly fix anything; making it completely worth the headache.
3. The best cooking ever!
It may be cliché, but nothing beats grandma's apple pie... or her cookies... or her chocolate cake... or any of the many other amazing creations that your grandmother makes. One thing is for sure, a trip to grandma's house almost definitely means a good meal and possibly a few extra pounds.
The only thing better than eating her cooking is getting to help make it. The time spent in the kitchen making cookies and learning all of the secrets to her family recipes is the backdrop for some of the best bonding time and your favorite memories.
4. Amazing stories about "the good old days".
If you get the opportunity to just sit and listen to your grandparents tell stories about when they were younger I promise that you won't regret it. They used to do some crazy things, from tying sleds to the bumpers of cars and driving over snow covered roads to traveling cross country and crawling under a fence to sleep in a yard for the night only to realize in the morning that they had broken into a prison.
Listening to their stories makes you wish you could travel back in time to a point where everything was simpler and communities were closer. It can also make you feel bad for your grandchildren due to the lack of interesting stories that you will have to share with them.
5. They have their priorities right.
The two most important things to my grandparents are their faith and their families. They serve as an example of unwavering faith in the face of adversity and times of struggle and an inspiration for me in my own walk with Christ.
I will never forget when my grandmother was diagnosed with polycythemia vera, a disease that caused her body to produce too many red blood cells. When diagnosed, the doctor looked her in the eye and told her that she should be dead due to the disease.
As she started treatment, I remember that she didn't question why she got this disease. She only wondered what purpose God must still have for her life. She was our children's church director, and saw this as God's way of enabling her to continue with that work.
Her ability to see God in every aspect of her life is my example as I strive to have that same personal relationship with Christ in my own life.
So, in honor of Grandparents' Day this past weekend I just want to say thank you. Thank you for all of your love and support. Thank you for the hugs when I was sad and for knowing that cookies have the power to fix pretty much anything. Thank you for everything that you have taught me directly and through example. Thank you for all of the stories and for all of the memories.
Thank you for being my Grandparents!
