Two very important people in my life are my Lola and Papa, which my fellow Filipinos know as meaning grandma and grandpa.

For as long as I could remember they have been in my life, caring for me and teaching me about the world.

My papa was a surgeon turned doctor that opened his own practice in a small town in West Virginia, while my Lola worked by his side to run the practice.

I remember as a little girl sleeping on my Lola and Papa's floor with my sister when we were visiting and how in the early morning I would be woken up my the little light in the bathroom that indicated that my Papa was getting ready for the day.

He was a man who was passionate about his work and who cared for those around him.

My family's world came crashing down one day though, when during a routine surgery on him the surgeon had accidentally cut and artery and he almost died.

He was never the same after that.

From that he developed on set dementia, which gets worse and worse every time I visit him.

It breaks my heart that he doesn't know who I am and that he is not the brilliant doctor that he once was.

But its ok because despite all of that my memories still hold him as the strong willed and loving man that he was.

Memories of him pushing my cousins and I around on a luggage carrier at a hotel while we all laughed are what I hold closest to me now.

There are times that I still get glimpses of the old Papa I knew before, like when he sees my Lola he lights up and dances with her. It is those kinds of things that make me the happiest despite the situation.

I would not be who I am today without him and I don't think anyone in my family would be. He was not only a provider for the family, but he was a hard working man who's love shaped how his children act, which in turn affects how their children act.

Thanks to him I have learned the value of family and the value of working hard to get what you want, since he worked hard to get to leave the Philippines to chase his dream of being a doctor in America. He knew no one but my Lola when he got here, but yet somehow after years was able to open his own practice.

For all of this and the inspiration he gives me in my life I need to thank him endlessly for.

I can not thank him though without thanking my Lola too though.

She also has molded me into the person that I am today and has taught me so many important lessons from advice on boys to teaching me that love is the strongest thing.

She has proven loves strength to me time and time again by taking care of my Papa while he is sick.

It is not an easy task and at times I know it exhausts her, but she tells me she does it because we would know be where we are today without him and it makes me see just how strong love is.

So, to my Lola and my Papa thank you for everything you have ever given me and taught me in life because without you I would not be who I am today.