Personal Narrative: Examining Parental Influences
As a child, I was never denied a single thing I ever wanted.
I was raised by my maternal grandparents, who I love more than life itself. They have been married for fifty-two years, amazingly.
When I say I was never denied anything, I mean it quite literally.
I asked my grandfather for a pony, I got a horse.
I asked for a swing set, he had a full crew come in and build me a playground.
After some research, it appears to have been Rainbow Play Systems, Inc.
I wanted one of those pink battery-powered Barbie corvettes, he got me one and I drove it up and down our driveway to my heart’s content.
Since my grandparents (who I call “mom” and “dad” and consider my parents) had already raised four girls of their own, I did have to wait until I …show more content…
Examining Parental Influences
In trying to understand my grandfather and why he fails to see the error in his thinking, I look at his own upbringing and it helps to clarify somewhat.
My great-grandmother was only sixteen when he was born in 1942.
He grew up without ever knowing his father and his mother struggled to support him and his younger sister by working her ass off as both a waitress and a housekeeper at several hotels.
She worked hard to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads.
Needless to say, I’m sure there were many things my grandfather went without during his childhood and adolescence.
But has he forgotten how this very fact was his inspiration for working hard to create a better life for himself as an adult?
Does he not see that the motivation for building his business and becoming successful is rooted in his early life and his firsthand knowledge of what it meant to want something you can’t afford to have?
My grandfather has always been driven and he likes to have nice things.
He and my grandmother have always prided themselves on living in beautiful homes, and being able to give their children the things they want.
And I don’t fault them for
I was raised by my maternal grandparents, who I love more than life itself. They have been married for fifty-two years, amazingly.
When I say I was never denied anything, I mean it quite literally.
I asked my grandfather for a pony, I got a horse.
I asked for a swing set, he had a full crew come in and build me a playground.
After some research, it appears to have been Rainbow Play Systems, Inc.
I wanted one of those pink battery-powered Barbie corvettes, he got me one and I drove it up and down our driveway to my heart’s content.
Since my grandparents (who I call “mom” and “dad” and consider my parents) had already raised four girls of their own, I did have to wait until I …show more content…
Examining Parental Influences
In trying to understand my grandfather and why he fails to see the error in his thinking, I look at his own upbringing and it helps to clarify somewhat.
My great-grandmother was only sixteen when he was born in 1942.
He grew up without ever knowing his father and his mother struggled to support him and his younger sister by working her ass off as both a waitress and a housekeeper at several hotels.
She worked hard to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads.
Needless to say, I’m sure there were many things my grandfather went without during his childhood and adolescence.
But has he forgotten how this very fact was his inspiration for working hard to create a better life for himself as an adult?
Does he not see that the motivation for building his business and becoming successful is rooted in his early life and his firsthand knowledge of what it meant to want something you can’t afford to have?
My grandfather has always been driven and he likes to have nice things.
He and my grandmother have always prided themselves on living in beautiful homes, and being able to give their children the things they want.
And I don’t fault them for