MY GRANDFATHER

I have a lot of blood relatives in my family, because my mum-side family is huge and my dad-side one is also very large. However, there is a special person for me. It is so special that I consider him to be my role model: my grandfather.

I can assure my grandfather is not a normal person. Well, physically, he is pretty much alike to his 80 years old friends (he is medium size tall, he is chubby, grey-haired, a bit forgetful due to his age...); but mentally, he is different from everyone else I know. He has had to overcome lots of misfortunes since he was a little child. For instance, his father died fighting in the Spanish Civil War when he was 7. He had 5 more brethren and his mother did not have enough resources to maintain them, so he had to work as an agricultor when he was 9. He could not attend school, and he could not receive any education. When he got married, he had 5 children, and one of them died at the age of 17. This was another hard blow for him. However, he has always tried to get over his problems and smile, in spite of the wounds which life had made him. This is exactly why I admire him so much. I would also like to be capable of being that modest, optimist, not moody and sensible.

While lots of people do not value the elderly, I love sitting next to my grandfather and listening to him and to his countless stories about past times, about lost traditions, about an unknown society for me.  I wish he could stay with me forever!