"Hey, Grandpa, if you need any help painting that fence, I'd be happy to come out and help," I spoke into my phone as I drove home from work. I had a long day, but I knew he had slipped the idea of painting the fence into a conversation with me on purpose.
"I don't want to be a pain, kid," he answered. "I would sure appreciate the help, though."
My grandfather is a very patient man. In order to comprehend his patience, you must know that he has brought seven daughters into this world. That, in my experience, requires a lot of tongue holding, a lot of comforting and a lot of tolerance.
"I'll be there in an hour or two," I promised, pulling into my driveway and rushing to get in the shower so I could put on my paint clothes and hit the road. It was a half an hour drive. Not a long way, but just enough to be a drive.
I find myself in situations a lot these days, where I hear other kids my age talk about their grandparents, and they never fully understand the importance of them. Many 20-something's take advantage of their grandparents.
I lost both my grandmothers at a fairly young age, and I constantly find myself wishing that I could ask them about one thing or another that's going on in my day to day life.
There are many different cultures around the world that hold their elderly in very high regard. Unfortunately, the United States is not one of those places.
According to The Week, there was even a law passed in China called the Elderly Rights Law, that "wags a finger at adult children warning them to never neglect or snub elderly people."
It's frightening and a little insulting that there has to be a law in place in order to guarantee a child sees their elderly parents. I don't believe it should come to that extreme. The issue of taking care of the elderly and treating them properly is a very popular conversation. There are even TED talks about the subject.
The elderly may be set in their ways, they may tell you too many stories when you're trying to get something done quickly, but those stories and those words are a part of you. One day, believe it or not, you will miss them.
Without the experiences they had in their lifetimes, your parents never would have grown up the way they did, and in turn, you might have turned out completely different. You owe a lot to your Grandparents. You owe a lot to the people who have been around you your entire life, and have seen you grow up.
When I left the day the fence was finished and painted white, I felt a smile on my face. Grandpa must have told all of us that helped multiple times, that he was proud of us. He also told us how thankful he was to have the help.
The truth is, respecting your grandparents shouldn't be an art. It should be second nature. Without them, there would be no you.
