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My Grandfather
by Melanie Blackwell
(I wrote this for my Grandfather on his 80th birthday)
Story 1001
Pulling off his red hat, he wipes sweat from his brow. A relaxed smile appears. He stoops, gently examining a young pepper plant with
work-worn hands. Time seems to disappear, as he feels adjoined with the gardens of his youth. Having grown up on a farm has taught him many things. Most prominently, it has given him a strong work ethic. He has worked
hard his entire life, giving his all to God and Family. He continues to be an inspiration to all, a truly self-made man.
The laughter of his grandchildren fills the air, bringing him out of his reverie. Playing hide and go seek, he is himself a child again. He pushes them higher as they swing, helps them look for pill bugs, even plays a few games of baseball with them. When they grow weary, he will sit them on his lap and read to them, or teach them about the different birds taking a dip in the birdbath, or tell them stories from when he was just a boy. The farm taught him much about the value of work, his grandchildren continually teach him the value of play.
The house grows quiet, the children have gone. He takes a second to pray, feeling most connected to God in such quiet moments. He sits for a minute, the eventfulness of the day catching up with him. Just as he is about to doze, a familiar voice calls, asking if he's ready to eat. It is his wife of more than fifty years. Together they have weathered every tragedy, rejoiced in each triumph, and remained committed to one another for all the times in between. Their relationship teaches all whose lives they touch the value of marriage, a lesson much needed in this era of forgotten commitments.
He walks back outside to the garden, deciding to add a few fresh vegetables to their meal. As he picks the best his garden has to offer, it occurs to him how much his life resembles the garden before him. He has spent a lifetime planting seeds of character in all who surround him. The harvest can be seen in the lives of his friends and family, those who choose to follow the example he has set. To work hard, to love God, to commit to marriage and family--in short, how to be an honorable man--this is the legacy he leaves to all who love him.
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