I was maybe seven or eight and my Grandma and Grandpa were visiting from Pittsburgh. Now, I don’t live close to Pittsburgh, about eight hours away to be exact, but even after the long car ride, my grandpa still wanted to go on a walk. Throughout all the laughing, playing and catching up him and I were doing, I seemed to have misplaced my red mitten. My warm, soft, comforting red mitten was now gone and never to be seen again. What’s a girl to do with just one mitten? As my smile and fun demeanor faded, I remember watching my grandfather slightly panic. He cracked jokes and tried to make me laugh as much as he could and just as we turned onto my street once again, a lady in her car pulled up beside us and asked if we had lost a mitten. My grandfather was so happy that he offered the woman twenty dollars for my one mitten. At first, she refused to accept twenty whole dollars for a single, child-sized mitten; he had insisted, though. When she drove off, I remember asking him why he gave her so much money for just one half glove, in which he refuted “It’s priceless; you can’t buy just one mitten in the store, especially not one with the memories yours holds.” Now, to say I knew my Grandfather well would be a lie, but to say I learned a lesson that day, would be an understatement.

My grandfather taught me many little life lessons and sayings throughout his getting to know me. He taught me to be humble for the life that has been provided for you, be thankful to God, be grateful to your parents and to always, always, carry twenty dollars on you. Now, the value of twenty dollars may not seem like a lot, but my grandpa always taught me that twenty dollars can get you anywhere you need to go. He taught me the idea of perseverance and how to be personable. When my grandfather offered that lady his entire twenty dollars just for my glove – for my happiness, I realized the true meaning behind it. Twenty dollars has, is and will always be more than just money in this sense. In this sense, twenty dollars is kindness, selflessness, my grandfather is willing to extend his twenty dollars to those who may not have it at the time. It took me many years to understand but what I learned from him is that it’s not always about making sure you have your twenty dollars. Sometimes it’s about extending it to those who may need it more than you. Just because we have our twenty dollars doesn’t mean we must always spend it on ourselves.

All you need is twenty dollars to succeed and get where you need to be. Many things are replaceable, but character is not. Character is something that changes as we go through changes. My grandfather was a war veteran, yet his stories never showed it due to being happy for still having a life. My grandfather suffered the death of his first born child, yet it could never be seen on his face for he was happy with the five other children he was blessed with. My grandfather had a son who was addicted to drugs, yet he tried his best to raise his other children in a way that would be a model for that one son.

My Grandpa taught me so many lessons that would be pointless to list on paper for you have to live them to learn them. But the most important lesson I have learned, he will never remember teaching me. I learned that nothing else matters except your twenty dollars – and hopefully by now you can realize that when I say twenty dollars I’m not actually talking about twenty dollars. Those twenty dollars is your hope, your kindness, and your will to serve. Nothing else matters. Being personable and reflective over your choices can lead you to a life of happiness and gratitude – and that’s a hard lesson to unlearn.