Grandma and Grandpa

Reflections on my sweet grandma and late grandpa

Grandma

This weekend, I had the privilege of visiting with grandma and appreciating her perspective on life with a newfound eagerness.

Grandma is involved and mindful of others. Whether her neighbors, old friends, newer friends, or family, Grandma engages each individual with a care to love them and do good for them. She’s eager to listen, yet also to share her careful thoughts. She pursues good things for her soul and mind: book clubs, bible studies, Zumba and circuit classes, time with grandkids and family, updates from the news, and walks.

Grandma loves collecting and sharing memories of her grandkids and family with others. She dresses so well- most outfits come from Chico’s of course- and always with sandals or booties with a little heel. Grandma is a thoughtful gift giver and direction taker- I think borrowing much from her many years as an elementary school teacher. She is so eager to do good to a fault at times. Grandma takes care of her body physically by keeping regular physical check-ups and maintains a routine of eating well-balanced meals- taco tuesdays, eating out on Fridays, etc.

What stands out most to me about Grandma is her vibrancy at 83 years old. Grandma is considerate, thoughtful, actively working on herself through her relationships, and she maintains such a caring demeanor with everyone she encounters. Grandma is an aspiration when it comes to her respectable life that is still being well lived. Grandma, you are so very loved and cherished. Thank you for all that you do and all of who you are.

Grandpa

Grandpa. First of all, who gets to say that their grandpa has a college baseball field named after him and is in the American Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame? Pretty darn cool. Grandpa always had the greatest stories to tell. Whether his stories about growing up on a farm in San Fernando Valley with his cow Daisy, his numerous baseball tales, fraternity brother memories, travel moments, or times of achievement through his athletic director and commissioner roles, Grandpa really did it all. He would share his stories with such delight on his face and such a jolly laugh. Every Christmas, Grandpa would come bearing loaded bags of fun and gross candies from all over the world, and he’d teach you how to make the perfect golden s’more on our many camping trips. Grandpa was someone admired by so many for his natural love for teaching others, gentle spirit, and jolly soul. I think what sticks out to me more than anything about Grandpa is the softness through which he viewed himself and others. Though Grandpa was a tough coach and knew how to push others to do better, his soft spirit was quick to see a second chance in others. And maybe having a daughter and three grand daughters helped to soften him up too. :) Grandpa maintained such a hardworking spirit, that his final retirement wasn’t until he was 75. And even into his final years, he remained so admired by his church where he served so many Sundays as an usher and an active gardener at the church and their home. So many wonderful memories flood my mind of Grandpa’s twinkle in his eye when telling jokes, to his locked in tone when sharing stories, and most importantly, to his perfectly buttered dollar-sized pancakes we’d wake up to countless mornings. He is certainly #1 on the field and in my heart (and yes, another cool fact-Cal State Northridge retired his #1).