The Influence of Grandparents on Character Development and Moral Values

Grandparents are one of the best parts of our lives, as they're found to be loving, caring, and wanting the best for their grandchildren and children all around them. I'm lucky to have grown up with my grandparents, and believe me, those periods spent with them went on to be one of my favorite childhood memories. Grandparents generally play a huge role in the family and the society at large, and today I'll love to use mine as a yardstick to talk about most grandparents.

My grandparents play a huge and significant role in my life, and had I not grown up under their watch in the community where I had my childhood, I'd definitely have grown up to become a menace to society because I grew up in one of the most dangerous parts of Nigeria where children drink and smoke at a very tender age. As of when I was in elementary school, most of my classmates already had experience with at least one of those, if not both, to show how terrible things were.

But because my grandparents are good people with a loving and affectionate heart, they know allowing me to mingle with such children or adults who don't stop their ward from indulging in such acts will be disastrous to my life journey, and so they did all they could to restrict my movements outside and as well seek other modes of indoor entertainment that'll fill the void of playing out for a kid of my age. Then I thought I was being punished, but now I know better, and I'm forever grateful for all they did.

It was from my grandparents that I learned about farming as well; they are into cultivating lands and planting most of our food items, and naturally, from moving along with them, I easily picked up basic knowledge about farming, and that's what's helping me presently as I'm now into planting as an avenue to be self-sufficient in this era of inflation and increase in price of food items.

My grandparents also play a huge role in giving me valuable advice about life, business, and dealing with people, be it strangers or someone I know. I've learned a lot from them, and most of what they taught me went on to be instrumental and helpful in the real world until most of the topics we learn in school never show up in our day-to-day lives. I remember once learning a valuable lesson about trust from them.

I probably once wrote about it, on how my grandmother, in a bid to teach me a lesson, gave me some money to go save in the bank for her. She told me it was 20 thousand naira, and I didn't question her, nor did I crosscheck. Then, before I left, she asked me to count the money. I counted three times, and I kept seeing 19 thousand instead of 20 like she said. Then she told me it was intentional, and she used that to teach me a lesson because not everyone can be trusted, and cross-checking to form data or statements doesn't mean you don't trust the person, but just to put yourself on a safe side.

My grandparents and other others around me have played a huge role in settling misunderstandings between those or more people who are fighting, and it's much easier for them because most of those who have such misunderstandings obey the opinion of the elders for respect of their age and wisdom from experience they've had in the past.

Elders are also out connection to our past generation and history, because had there been no elders who passed on the legacy of our culture and traditions from one generation to another, most of our traditions would have gone to extinction and long forgotten, but thanks to them we learn a lot about our heritage and history and on a regular basis draw from their well of wisdom.

I'm grateful for all the elders I'm surrounded with and all that they've done for me through the years via their words, advice, and the like. I pray the Lord prolongs their days and fills the remaining days with joy like a river.

All photos are taken and edited on canva.