Day 19: Great Minds

Write about someone you admire and you thought to have had a beautiful mind.

The two people pictured above are my grandparents, my mother's parents, Rosa and Israel Lopez. They are the sweetest, most supportive grandparents a person could have. 

This post is about Rosa.

More than a year ago, my husband lost his grandfather, Doug and we flew to Florida for the funeral. It was rough as all funerals for loved ones are. My grandparents showed up, to my pleasant surprise. 

My abuela is a woman of Jehovah. Has been since I've known her and is one of the most purely spiritual people I know. When I see stuff in the news regarding people like ministers and priests who do horrific things or supposedly religious people using the Bible to spread hate, it's easy for me to disparage all religion. But then I think about Rosa.

While we were at shiva, my grandparents, my husband and I were talking and my abuela said something that really stuck with me and inspired the tagline on my blog.

"We were never meant to die. We were never supposed to die. We were made to keep learning, to do good, to grow, to live forever."

This really stuck out to me and has stayed with me ever since. It comforts me when I'm feeling my most anxious. Because existential panic attacks are something that happen to me a few times a year. Grappling with the idea that all the things must eventually come to an end. But they shouldn't have to.

I feel at peace whenever my abuela is around. She's joyful, intelligent, kind but stands her grounds when it matters most. No one pushes her around. She is absolutely inspiring. This is a woman who grew up in some of the most oppressive times for a woman and came out of that with grace and a serenity that I envy. She does everything she can for her family, for those around her and complete strangers, not for a pat on the back or accolades but simply because she cares about people.

It's hard to look at the world around us and not be utterly enraged all the time. I don't how Rosa does it, but I aspire every day to be more at peace than I am in anger.