Remember grandparents

All have passed on, but their contributions to me remain with me.

Sunday is National Grandparents' Day.  "What's that?" you ask.  It's like Mother's Day and Father's Day but rolled into one for the previous generation.

When I first learned about the day, my next thoughts naturally went to my own grandparents.  I found myself reflecting on something my paternal grandfather once wrote me.  The men in my direct line of fathers were never much for writing — I'm an exception to that "rule" — so I was surprised to receive his letter.  Unsurprisingly, it was his only letter to me.

It wasn't very long, and I don't remember much of what it said.  But what my grandfather wrote at the end has stayed with me.  He essentially wrote, "I don't know if anything I've said is helpful, but if it is, keep it.  Throw the rest away."

In the ensuing years, I've marveled at the wisdom my grandfather gave me in such a compact package.  It's part of the heritage I've received from all my grandparents.  All have passed on, but their contributions to me remain with me.  And it's those contributions that fill my heart with gratitude as I remember grandparents.

Remember the paternal

Both my grandfathers were farmers during the Great Depression, so I've got humble but hardy stock on both sides of my family tree.  But my paternal grandfather didn't stay a farmer.  He eventually sold his dairy farm to embrace an entirely new profession as an electrical subcontractor, eventually building a successful business.

He was a generous man.  He once let me borrow his car so I could go home for Thanksgiving.  My uncle questioned him, citing an accident I had caused involving another of his vehicles.  I marveled at my grandfather's response.  Calling my uncle by name, he said, "It's only a car."

But I didn't understand just how generous he was until I attended his funeral.  One of his good friends described how my grandfather left him the keys to his truck, insisting he drive his wife to Salt Lake City for needed medical treatment.  In that moment I realized why my grandfather could so easily lend me his car.  It wasn't his first rodeo.

His wife a real Nosy Nellie, but she also had a kindness of her own while insisting others adopt a vigorous work ethic.  She died of cancer while I was on my mission, but I had a special experience at the time through which I understood that she had moved to a better place.

Remember the maternal

I never knew my mother's father — at least not in this life — because he died while my mother served her mission.  But I've had a special experience through which I've come to "know" him in a real and connected way.

He lived as a sharecropper growing some soybeans but mostly tobacco.  His neighbors could never understand how my grandfather could be a Latter-day Saint and grow tobacco for a living.  When asked about it, my grandfather would reply, "I don't smoke it or chew it.  I just grow it."  He was a down-to-earth, simple man who believed in hard work and worked hard with his own hands to support a growing family.

His wife was the only woman I've ever known who cooked better than my mother.  Apologies to my other grandmother, who never would have tolerated something like that said in her presence, but it's true.  She was also one of the kindest people I've ever known.  The summers my brother and I spent on her farm are among my most cherished childhood memories.

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Pay it forward

I've got so many memories flooding my mind now that I can't possibly describe them all in this monologue.  But these memories form the bulk of the heritage my grandparents bequeathed me, a heritage I carry with me to this day and hope one day to bestow upon the children I still hope to have.

It's little wonder then why we have a day to commemorate the contribution of grandparents.  What is a wonder is why the holiday isn't more well known.  Everyone knows about Mother's Day and Father's Day.  But I didn't know about Grandparents' Day before this year.

This Sunday, let's remember grandparents.  What legacy have your grandparents left you?  What memories of them influence you today?  If they're still here, take some time on Sunday to thank your grandparents for whatever positive difference they made in your life.  And if they're not, then do as I'm doing and reflect on the difference they made.

Either way, when you remember grandparents, you keep them alive in your heart.  You carry the heritage they left behind, making it easier to leave that heritage to those who live after you.  And that will bring you more joy in your journey.

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You can listen to the monologue from today's episode of Joy In The Journey Radio here and continue the conversation by leaving a comment below.  Find more information about this episode, including how to listen to the entire episode, by going to the show page for this episode.