My Tribute to Grandma

By Nate Schneider.

My grandma has lived a very interesting life! Anna (middle name, last name) is 91 years old and she lives in (Small Town), TX. Prepare yourself for the exciting life of grandma!

Most people don't know that my grandma lived in Kansas and ran a restaurant called the "Yucca Inn" in the summer of 1948. She ran the restaurant with her sister, Helen. They started the restaurant for the experience. The Yucca Inn had a cordial atmosphere and great food.

One thing that a lot of people do know about Grandma is that she loved to garden. My grandma even had her own garden plot in (Small Town). Grandma grew snow peas, tomatoes, lettuce, broccoli, potatoes, green beans, and squash. Grandma also loved to grow flowers and trees around her house. She planted azaleas, pansies, impatiens, gardenias, and redbud trees.

Although Grandma loves the outdoors, she was not a stranger to the kitchen. My grandma's hamburgers were the best in the world! She also used to make a great shrimp gumbo. Grandma was famous for her baking skills too. My grandma used to bake bread and cookies. In my opinion, her Swiss Braided Bread would have won in any competition -- hands down! My grandma and I used to make exceptional molasses cookies. We would use a rolling pin to flatten the dough and then we cut it into different shapes, depending on the season.

My grandma has always been a strong patriot and has very definite political beliefs. Grandma has always felt that keeping up with the national news is important. Presently, to stay informed, Grandma listens to "Rush" and watches Fox news and Hannity. In this coming election, my grandma is leaning towards Rick Santorum.

Grandma started going to church at an early age and trusted Christ as her Savior. She loved to ride her favorite horse down to the creek to reminisce on Scripture. My grandma's favorite Scriptures are the Psalms. She is currently working on reading a one-year Bible. My grandma finds that, "The most important truth is that your neighbor is the one you live with everyday and is the one to whom you should practice love and kindness."

These are just some of the stories and truths from Grandma's life. No matter what Grandma has done, whether it was running a restaurant, gardening, staying involved in politics, or caring for her family, she gave 100 percent! Now you know a little bit more about the interesting and exciting life of Grandma!

Nate wrote this essay as an assignment for his weekly educational therapy. He went one paragraph at a time, interviewing Mom and taking notes. The wonderful Ms. Catherine edited and assisted. Today Nate read the finished product to his grandma. Mom even turned off Rush to listen and looked at Nate a few times as he read. She especially seemed to like the bits about her cooking and was struck that Nate included the truth about loving your neighbor. She tearfully observed, "It only took me 90 years to learn it." Well done, Nate.