For Christmas, Siena received a hand-made sweater from her Great Grandma Wood. This is no ordinary sweater, as my grandmother is no ordinary woman. You see, she knit it in the fashion of sweaters she used to knit many years ago when she was working at the credit union. For every child that was born in the small town where she lives, she knit a sweater and anonymously mailed it from the post office in the town where she worked to the family's post office box. She spent countless hours doing this, not in search of any praise on her craftsmanship or thanks from the recipients, but out of sheer service and love.
Now, she suffers from tremors in her hands that make it difficult to pursue many of the hobbies she has loved for years; however, she was able to make this sweater for Siena last year and when I think of the time and effort that must have taken, I am overwhelmed with gratitude. When I see it I will not only be reminded of her selfless love, but also of her example of what true service is.
yep, that's little Stac
The second woman I would like to highlight is my other grandmother. After raising a family of 3 boys (4, if you count my grandpa) and 1 girl, she continued her teaching career at the elementary school. I was fortunate enough to be in her class when I was in 2nd grade and remember learning many things, but two in particular: first, that I should always try to write in cursive; second, that I should never address her as "Grandma" in the classroom, but as "Mrs. Camp" like everyone else. To this day, whenever I write a letter or in my journal, I try to write it in cursive because I can still hear my teacher, Mrs. Camp, telling me that cursive is best.
Whenever I run into anyone from Salina, I introduce myself as a Camp, and most of the time they say something like "Oh, Mrs. Camp was my favorite teacher!" My sister who is attending college in Idaho said that she had a professor from Salina. On the first day of class she introduced herself and the professor asked, "Are you related to the Camp family in Salina?" She nodded; the professor set down his roll book and started to tell the entire class about how wonderful Mrs. Camp was as his own teacher about 30 years ago. I know that my grandma's classroom was a place where everyone felt important and needed and those memories are lasting.
Because of these two women, I have parents who have been taught by their example and who both have these same qualities. I challenge anyone reading this to take a moment to ponder the things your parents and grandparents have done for you and if possible, let them know of the things you have learned from them.
Gratitude isn't gratitude unless it's passed on.
