祖孫年齡相距近一甲子，但之間的情感卻往往出乎意料地濃厚。孩子說:「陪伴阿公、阿嬤、爺爺和奶奶是最幸福的事」。

沒錯，這正是俗語「家有一老，如有一寶」的哲理。作為長輩的祖父母見多識廣，有著豐富的生活閱歷，能帶給晚輩很多不一樣的人生觀。

今年的祖父母節，就讓身為孫兒女的孩子們寫下與祖父母之間的故事，跟大家分享他們祖孫之間所發生過的趣事吧！

The Love of Being Together

7年級李忻霏

The Love of Being Together Opened my photo album, and memories started to flood my head. There were pictures of me watching a movie. There were pictures of me celebrating my fifth birthday. There were pictures of me traveling to Disney World. There were pictures of me playing in an amusement park. As I continued to turn the page, my eyes stopped on a picture of me with my grandfather. My grandfather has always meant a lot to me. For as long as I can remember, he always took me to the bus stop during weekdays so that I could go to school. During weekends, he would often take me birdwatching, hiking, and catching some fresh air in nature that you would never get in cities. My grandfather loved nature. I suddenly felt depressed when I realized that the day in the picture has now become a memory because my grandfather is no longer with me. “Yes! We finally arrived at the park. Grandpa, grandpa, play with me,” this statement echoed in my mind. It was what I said to my grandfather that day. Soon, the echo turned into an image in my head. I was so happy that I shrieked with delight. Taking out the photograph of when I was with my grandfather, the photograph appeared to be very old. It was a photo of my grandfather holding a bubble blower for me to blow huge bubbles. One of the most unforgettable memories was the day my grandfather and I went to an enormous park to blow bubbles. I was very young at that time. I love to blow bubbles and play “childish” games. Even though my grandfather was already an old man, he still played “childish” games with me. To be honest, I think it was quite boring to him. However, he still continued in order to make me happy. He took some photographs of me playing in the area. I still have those photographs in my photo album. What I remembered the most that day was that I did not know how to blow bubbles at first. Therefore, my grandfather slowly taught me how to blow a huge bubble! The bubble was so enormous that it caught everyone’s attention. It was the day we created the memory that became fixed in my mind.

After a few hours, my grandfather held my hand and went shopping. Soon after, my grandfather took me to an amusement park to play. I remember the time when my grandfather wanted to win a huge stuffed bear for me by throwing a little ball into a cup. It was tough. However, he still won it! It was amazing and I loved it so much. I even have the stuffed bear inside my room. The day was fulfilling. Thinking about it, it has been five years since my grandfather went to a better place. I miss the time we played together. I miss the days when my grandfather patiently educated me about the world. I miss everything he did for me. Every time I go to an amusement park, it always makes me think of my grandfather, and I went there when I was so young. I always think I didn’t spend enough time with him. I don’t want to have any regrets about not spending enough time with someone ever again. That’s why I wanted to spend more time with people who mean a lot to me. I want to make sure I don’t regret anything in the future, so now, I always save time for them. I play board games, go shopping, watch TV and movies, and cook with them.

 Nothing is ever lost to us as long as we remember it. Time passes so fast that you sometimes don’t even notice it. No matter how long the time has passed, I will always remember all those precious memories. Think about it, how long have you not contacted your grandparents? How long have you not seen them? How long have you not sat down to have lunch or dinner with them? Pick up your phone and make that phone call. Cherish the time you spend with your family. Even a phone call or an occasional dinner is better than no contact at all. Who knows when youll lose someone that means a lot to you?

A trip full of chaos

9年級蔡昕恩

Who has a kind-hearted, funny, patient, and generous grandma and grandpa? If you don’t, I do. To me, grandma and grandpa aren’t just “favorites” who give you the freedom to do anything you want but they truly give their world to us. They’re like a security blanket that covers all your stresses and always be there for the highs and lows. My grandma who’s 74 years old and my grandpa who’s 75 years old always buffs about his own achievements or tell me how handsome he is. I can’t live without listening to my grandfather’s buff. On the other hand, my grandmother who is able to dance in a crowd to make everyone laugh is a “classic” to me. Her facial expressions and ugly movements are just “classic!”. Today, as a beloved granddaughter I’m going to introduce them with their story to you…

From 1949 to 1950 my grandma and grandpa were born. They were little babies wanting mommies hugs until time passed they turned into 74, 75 years old grandparents. People say love never changes if you meet the right person and I guess it’s a piece of drawing that painted the romance of my grandma and grandpa.

 “Japan” was there was first trip together with their child. Whenever I asked them about the trip they not only memorized everything but also the smile on their faces looked like they were able to fly with that mouth to heaven. They were always delightful whenever I talked about this “memorable” trip.

From the picture shown my mom is their daughter standing in the middle with her two brothers standing beside my grandma and grandpa. They visited the “Shinano River” known as the most historic and longest river in Japan. The historic and long river is like Grandpa and Grandma’s family relationship; a rope that’s long and strong enough to go through hard times together. I asked my grandpa why did they visited there on their first family trip he replied “Before this family trip with my kids I’ve gone to the Shinano River when I was young. I think going to the same place again but with different people allows me to see how fast time flies and makes the place more interesting!” While my grandma says “Look at my mom’s (their daughter) sweatshirt, that’s her 13-year-old birthday gift from her. Since my mom loved red at that age my grandma especially looked out for red clothes and took time to find the best fit for mom (their daughter).”

Today the Shinano River might be an ordinary river to visit or an ordinary place you would visit in Japan but nothing feels better when their beloved daughter is wearing her newly bought birthday gift and having grandpa to visit there with a totally different character. If someone said the Shinano River has good views, then they’re wrong. If someone said the Shibano River was more than just having good views, then they’re probably right. What’s more important here is that they all enjoyed the trip very much in their own way no matter how much chaos happened. No matter how uncomfortable the hotel is or how immature my grandpa and grandma are, they still tend to create the best memories for themselves. At last, I’m sure they would plan a third-time visit when the kids are grown adults and grandpa and grandma turning into older ones. Maybe it will become more interesting and memorable next time…

爺爺奶奶的婚禮

9年級周鈺軒

泰戈爾說：「人生猶如一本畫冊，內容如何，端看個人如何描繪。」每一分每一秒，都發生著不同的人生大事。有的寶寶才出生，有的老人面臨死亡，有人經歷失敗的愛情，也有人走入婚姻的殿堂。每個人都有不同的人生，而這些的相同之處在於都精彩有趣。

這天我回到爺爺奶奶家，看著他們在餐桌上吃飯聊天的樣子，我不禁好奇爺爺奶奶的愛情故事是如何發展的。我問奶奶：「你跟爺爺怎麼結婚的？」奶奶笑著走回她的房間，打開那幾十年都沒開過的櫃子，拿出一本相簿上面寫著「成長歲月」四個字。那本相冊老舊的封面，是歲月留下來的珍貴回憶。

翻開相冊的封面是一張黑白照片，從來沒有看過黑白照片的我顯得格外興奮。照片裡那個閉月羞花的女人是我的奶奶，而那個帥氣而穩重的男人是我的爺爺。看著照片中表情嚴肅的奶奶，我提出了第一個問題：「奶奶拍照為什麼都不笑？」奶奶說：「以前女人出嫁是不能笑的，笑了就會被別人說『那個女人不知廉恥』。」所以在這些照片中，穿著婚紗的奶奶都沒有笑容。奶奶說即使在照片中看不見她的笑容，但她還是對她的丈夫，也就是我的爺爺十分滿意。

那是一次難忘的相遇。在公車上，沈默中的對視是他們第一次的相遇。他們沒有太多的相處就結婚了。然而看似草率的婚姻，並沒有導致他們因為對彼此不了解而貌合情離。反而讓他們互相理解，相互扶持。一起從貧窮到富有，從相識到相愛，從青春到蒼老。

今年夏天，我回到爺爺奶奶家，聽著他們的愛情故事留下美好記憶。隨著歲月的流失，爺爺奶奶感嘆歲月不饒人，這段回憶也隨著時間越來越久遠，然而這段回憶會永遠記在爺爺奶奶的心裡，天長地久。

One sweet dessert

9年級周靖蕎

    It was finally the Summer holiday again and also finally time for me to go and visit my grandma. It has been a while since I had been back to Taiwan because of the COVID restrictions, I thought as my grandmother brought out a plate of her freshly made desserts. We talked as we ate in the scorching summer weather, and as the conversations went on my grandma started to talk about her childhood: Growing up, I was a woman. A woman was all my family believed me to be and could be. As a young girl, I only received minimal education and was forced to work countless gruesome hours in perilous environments because if I couldn’t give back to the family that raised me, the least I could do was get out of the way. I felt as if everyone saw me as a boulder that lay in the way of my brother’s success—something like a burden.

    As the oldest female of the family, I was assigned her role at birth. I did not think this was fair, nor was I given a choice. I was the caretaker sent to help my parents. And even though it went unspoken, I knew I was birthed to ensure everyone else had a comfortable life. My role was to put everyone else first, and so I did what everyone told me was right. Even though the money I made was not a lot, I was happy that I at least could afford to stop being such a hindrance to the family. At the time, I figured working random jobs was just like school. It taught me new things, and I loved to learn. My jobs taught me how to sew and make clothes I could only dream of wearing. It was quite literally a dream come true! My jobs made me the Jack of all trades. Which allowed me to have many talents, but I also was never given the chance to perfect each one. However, these incomplete talents made my mother happy and so it made me happy. I was like a nanny, a tailor, and everything else jumbled up into a package that was always at my family’s disposal. I was basically given the role of a mother by my mother.

The years passed just like that. I worked while everyone else studied. It became a new reality for me, which I had come to accept. Money was not something I had a lot of, and it became more sparse after funding for the university my brother attended in Taipei. It became apparent that working in a rural area was no longer a desired option since the pay was exiguous, so I emptied my savings and took a much-needed break from my brother in search of a better-paying job. From what I have heard Taipei was described as heaven on earth, a place built with rainbows and glitter—where everyone struts around in their personally tailored attires with only shopping on their to-do list. The place and that lifestyle sound almost too good to be true.

The trip to Taipei was strenuous, and the destination overwhelmed me with disgust. I finally learned that reality in Taipei was far from the stories I was told. The streets were filled with the sounds of honking cars and the smells of exhaust fumes. The car’s tinted windows acted like a shield from the harsh realities of the world outside their bubbles of privilege. Meanwhile, beggars lined the streets, their eyes pleading for scraps of change. The air was thick with the stench of desperation as the beggars called out for help, their voices hoarse from constant shouting. All I could think of was how many of those beggars came to Taipei with the same dream as mine to get a better lifestyle. It was not somewhere I wanted to call home. So, after visiting my brother, I wasted no time and headed directly home. Even though the trip home was annoying, to say the least, at least a stranger accompanied me, so I always had someone to talk to. When the stranger and I first bumped into each other at the train station, we discovered we were headed the same way, so we decided to go on this adventure together. At first, the conversation was dry and awkward, but we soon became quite close after we found out we both had quite a lot in common. He was the only person that actually listened to me. He sat there for hours listening to my dreams of owning a shop that I built up using my efforts without interrupting. He listened to my rants about how unfair my childhood was. How I want to and will be much more than the woman, everyone believed me to be. Being with this stranger felt so right; it felt like he was the missing piece I had lived my whole life trying to find. This stranger is now my husband, and this stranger is also my biggest supporter of the small shop that I now own. After listening to the story of my grandmothers upbringing, I realized how fortunate I am to not be living the way she was forced to live. I realized how lucky it is to be given all the opportunities and not have the need to carry a type of stigma that has been put upon you from birth. However, while we are given these privileges, there are still many women around the world in situations just like the ones my grandmothers were in, and most of them do not end up achieving their dreams and escaping the grasp of their parents.

    Even though they all know the struggles, even more women pass on this type of upbringing to their kids lives. Therefore, I am very grateful my grandmother allowed this sexist tradition in the family to end with her and how she tried her hardest to give my mother the best life she could afford. I am also very grateful for how my grandmother treats each and every one of her grandchildren with the utmost care and always goes out of her way to make us happier, just like the homemade dessert that is sitting right in front of me.