I am extremely lucky to still have great grandparents. I admire their profound wisdom and sweet spirits, so I decided to interview them. Their answers were hilarious, moving and inspiring. It is intriguing to me that these people have been through each season of life and experienced the good and bad of everything. Although their lives as young people were quite different than my life today, it is still amazing to realize that they were once in the shoes I am in now. As a society, we sometimes overlook the beauty of what elderly people have to offer. They know more than we do! Cherish your elders while you can.
Be sure to scroll to the end for a video of some of the best moments in the interview!
Where were you born?
Mamaw- Graham County, Robinsville, NC
Papaw- Hemingway, SC
Describe your childhood.
Mamaw- “It was okay. We had kind of a hard time; we had to walk a long way to school. But, I had a good momma and daddy."
Papaw- “That’s a hard question. It was fun!” (Favorite thing to do) “Push a wheel with a piece of wire.”
What is your favorite memory from school?
Mamaw- hear in video below.
Papaw- “The teacher sending me home for being mean---talking!”
What were your hobbies?
Mamaw- “We played hide and seek a lot, jumped rope… we didn’t really have anything to play with. We threw balls back and forth at each other, and we got to wade in the creek.”
Papaw- hear in video below.
What jobs did you have?
Mamaw- “I worked in a restaurant (Cramerton Café), and I was a waitress—I liked that. I got to flirt with boys… I was about 16 or 17. I worked in the sewing room in a factory for about 15 years… I remember that really well."
Papaw- “I was a first class mechanic.”
What do you remember about getting saved?
Mamaw- “I remember that when I went down and asked the Lord to come into my heart, I felt like he did. Then I got baptized--- I was 14 I think. I remember a lot of times when my mama prayed for us; you won’t ever forget that if you hear your mama pray for you.”
Papaw- “It was like a change of life. I was probably about 30 or 35---somewhere in there. I went to homecoming dinner… I went to fill my belly and got my soul filled too! I failed a lot in life, but I’ve always thought of the Lord."
What advice would you like to give to people today?
Mamaw- “Well, I would say put your trust in God, and ask him to lead you in the direction he would have you go. He won’t lead you astray.”
Papaw- “What I’d tell them to do? …Go to church and serve the Lord, and get saved.”
What makes you the happiest?
Mamaw- “It makes me real happy when I get to see my grandchildren and my family. I like it when I get to go to church and we have a good service. And sometimes reading the Bible and talking to the Lord in private… that makes me happy.”
Papaw- “Laying in the bed talking to the Lord, every day and every night, and every morning when I get up.”
What is your biggest fear?
Mamaw- “I don’t know that I have the real biggest fear. I mean, you know, I just try to take one day at a time. Because if you look out, you don’t know what’s out there. I just try to live one day at a time, and trust God to get me through that day.”
Papaw- “I believe my biggest fear would be not being able to walk.”
What do you think is the most important thing in life?
Mamaw- “Loving the Lord.”
Papaw- “Serving the Lord with all of your heart.”
