What Writing Means To Me

           In my 20 years of living, I have barely had grandfathers in my life.  My dad’s father, Grandpa Bull, passed away from lung cancer before I was born, so I never got the chance to meet him.  My mom’s father, Papa Didier, was robbed and shot when I was very young and left a scar in many of our hearts.  Even though I have grown up without grandpas, my grandmothers have been a significant part of my life.  After all they have been through they continue to be the strongest and bravest women I have ever met. They mean the absolute world to me and have made an immense impact on my life.  They push me and support me in everything I do. However, when I was young I only appreciated my grandmothers because they bought me really cool things and would scratch my back on the couch while I watched Fox And The Hound on repeat.  Now that I have grown older I have matured and started to appreciate just having them in my life.  They tell the best stories, have great sense of humors and give awesome advice about everything in life.  Their hearts are filled with nothing but genuine love and compassion. 

            On February 24^th, 2000, my Papa Didier passed away in a tragic shooting.  I was a little girl and I remember going into the dining room where I found my mom sobbing in my neighbor’s arms.  She must of come over to comfort my mom while my dad rushed home from work, they all got the news that my Papa was shot in the chest at his meat shop.  Due to the fact that I was so young, everyone refused to tell me what was going on besides the fact that Papa was sent to the emergency room.  My parents went to the hospital later that night to be with him and left me at home with the babysitter.  A few years later my parents explained everything to me.  My Papa passed away in the hospital leaving his family and the city of Fort Wayne in anguish.  Everyone loved Papa, he was a great man and his passing was a devastating tragedy.  The boy who shot my Papa was a minor, which led to a chaotic and stressful trial.  Even though the way he died was horrible, all the memories of my Papa were nothing but great; he was a very hardworking man and loved his life.  He was a man of strong faith and always lived his life for God and taught me how to trust God’s Plan.  He loved all of his grandchildren so much and it breaks my heart because he hasn’t even met everyone in my amazing family but I know he is proudly smiling down on all of us from heaven giving us the strength and courage to live our lives to the fullest. 

            My family is very important to me and they are what shape me into the kind of person I am today.  Even though my grandfathers were not in my life for very long, their legacies will live on forever and have a great significance on my quality of life.  They are the reasons why I love to write because I feel like I am expressing my thoughts and emotions not only to my audiences but also to my Papa and Grandpa in heaven.  Writing has always comes very natural to me, I love to write about myself.  Not necessarily in an autobiography type way but in a way where I can express my own personal thoughts and opinions about everything in life.  My writing is an art; it may not sound like William Shakespeare but it causes me to think beyond what is right in front of me.  I mainly started writing because I want a beautiful record or portfolio of my life to later share with my kids and grand-kids someday.  I want to tell them stories just like how my grandmothers share their stories with me.  My Nana is a very strong woman; she is a person I can always count on.  Her loving and caring heart inspires me to be a nice person to everyone at all times.  My other grandma is wisest woman I have ever met; she is the best person to go to for advice.  I could sit and listen to her talk for hours.  She is my main inspiration in my life and my writing because she makes me think about life and society in many different aspects.  I have been through so much in the past 20 years and I want to share my appreciation and knowledge through my writing.  I could not be more thankful to have my family always supporting me and being there for me whether they are living thousands of miles away from me or are looking down on my from heaven.  I just want to do what I love and make my loved ones proud.  I think I am doing a decent job so far.