Our Grandparents

They taught us many valuable lessons, from carpentry to cooking to caring about each other. We asked readers to tell us about their grandparents, and the special things they taught them. Here are some of the more wonderful answers.

TRULY BLESSED

Seventy years ago my grandmother helped me be born right here in Seattle. Through the years she taught me to love and respect every creature on Earth. Through her I learned, "Let's see what else we can make with that." I was truly blessed.

- Lila Bloch, Seattle

TAUGHT IMPORTANT LESSONS

I was truly lucky to have a wonderful grandfather, Hugh DeLacy, who was on the Seattle City Council in the '30s and a U.S. congressman from Seattle's First District in 1944. He lived a life true to his beliefs until he died in '86. Probably the most important lessons his life vividly taught me were to be ethical, be my own person, and never sell out. On the practical side, he made great buckwheat pancakes and taught me how to hammer and saw.

- Rebecca Adams, Redmond

VIVID MEMORIES

Grandma Alger passed on when I was 2 1/2, Grandma Forsberg when I was 5 1/2. I remember each of them vividly. They were beautiful ladies. Grandpa Forsberg was a master carpenter and house builder who taught me how to cut a board straight without a square. Grandpa Alger taught me by his lifestyle the great values of forgiveness, patience, trust, love and godly faith and that, ultimately, nothing else really matters.

- Darrell A. Forsberg, Seattle

BEST FRIENDS

My best friends are my grandparents. They are warm and giving people who taught me the greatest lesson of love. We enjoy sharing our values and ideas of life in the '90s.

My grandparents have shown me that plenty of friends and a close family will make all your days very happy and very rich.

- Stefanie Kluger, Seattle

SECURE FEELING

My parents did their best, but having eight kids in 12 years must have strained their mental health.

My grandparents gave us the predictable routines children relish. My happiest memories are of Oklahoma summers when day followed day in glorious sameness and every night I was tucked into bed on the screened-in porch and lulled to sleep by cicadas, secure in the knowledge that no one would kill me during the night.

- Tina Hendricks, Seattle

SHE PROVIDED THE EXTRAS

I was born and raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil. While my parents were busy working and dealing with material needs of our family, my grandmother was providing the extras that make life worthwhile. She paid and took me to ballet lessons, English and French lessons, Sunday concerts at our Symphony Theater, movies, galleries and museums.

I left Brazil in 1976 and Grandma died in 1982. I still get a lump in my throat when I think of her. Also, I feel sorry for my own kids for not having their grandparents close by: My parents live in Brazil and we just visit about every three years.

- Elia Saez, Everett

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

I am fortunate enough to still have a "set" of grandparents.

My grandma has always given me one very important thing. Unconditional love. My earliest memory of her is my being tied to the clothes pole while she tried to hang some laundry. And that memory is the best, as I know it was done out of love and care.

Through all these years she has never presumed to judge me, though I've known I have not made her real happy with some of the things I've done. She's just loved me.

- Bekki Hargreaves, Monroe

LEARNED SELF-RELIANCE

I spent a week or so each summer with my maternal grandmother. In the evenings, she would tell me about her life growing up on a farm in Montana and raising a child as a single mother during the Great Depression and World War II. She taught me to be self-reliant and to never take abuse from anyone. She also helped shape my political ideals with her stories of how FDR saved the country.

- Karen M. Gray, Oak Harbor

THEY HAVE FUN WITH THEM

We have "bachan" and "jichan" (that means grandmother and grandfather in Japanese). Older people smile at us when we call them that. They teach us to speak Japanese and we get to stay with them two times a month. They live in a place by the lake and we tell them we like to fall asleep listening to the waves making noise.

Bachan cooks us Japanese food and Jichan makes us laugh because he acts so funny when he plays with us. You should see the breakfasts he has on the table for us! Bachan takes us to special places where we have fun. I guess she couldn't do that too many times with our mother, because Bachan and Jichan had to work every when Mommy was growing up. That's why our Bachan and Jichan are special and we will take care of them and do things for them when they grow older.

- Ryo Canda, 9 years, Seattle - Ryan Canda, 6 years

HE'S GIVEN THEM FREEDOM

I was so pleased to see your question about grandparents. I have to tell you about the generosity of my husband's grandfather (Melvin Anderson). My husband (Scott) is an only child and an only grandchild. Unfortunately both of his parents, and his grandma, have passed away. He has always been extremely close to his grandpa (talks about going to see the ice caves at Rainier years ago, etc.) But anyway here's my story:

Last April, Grandpa bought himself a new car . . . a 1990 Oldsmobile Ciera. When we drove him to the dealer to pick it up, he had purchased one for my husband too . . . Grandpa's is red, Scott's is blue.

Then this past January he bought me a car . . . he said if Consumer Report approved it and it wasn't a convertible he would pay for it. I'm the proud owner of a 1991 Celica. Complete with all the trim.

No strings attached. He said because we would inherit what he had one day, he would rather enjoy our smiling faces now. What a great attitude. Hopefully he'll be with us for hundreds of more years (he's 83 years old) and we'll be around to enjoy him (we're each 36 years old).

What has he given us or done for us . . . he gave my husband back his evenings: We both had old Dodge Darts - mine was a '71, his was a '67 - far too often Scott would be frantically trying to get a car running before work the next morning. He gave us luxury. We still use the furniture my Mom gave us years ago, etc. But the cars are freedom.

Hopefully when Grandpa goes, we will be older and successful on our own and the money/inheritance would be just a bonus. Right now it is definitely a lifestyle change!!

- Peg O'Brian, Seattle