On the Teachings and Examples of Katherine Aug

I am one of the few people who can say that I had a close relationship with one of my great grandparents. This was not the kind of relationship where I got a sweater in exchange for a hesitant kiss on the cheek at Christmas. This was truly a deep and meaningful friendship. No, I did not see her on a weekly, or even monthly, basis. When I was a child I saw her more often than in laters years, but our relationship did not suffer because of it. My grandmother taught me to how to think and how to learn in a way that brought pleasure to academic pursuits. She talked to me as an adult. She made me coffee, lit herself a cigarette and taught me to play Solitaire. In the process if teaching me this game she talked about the new book she was reading or answered questions from Jeopardy on the TV. Grandma Aug taught me to think not by telling me to think, but by making me think when I was oblivious to the fact that thinking was possible. I don't remember ever staying at her house and watching something mindless on TV. She was not the type to let the television entertain me. It wasn't her job to entertain. She wanted me to think and to learn. We watched public television and Paddington Bear, and we read through Trivial Pursuit cards when there was nothing on worth watching. I see parents and grandparents today spoiling their children by promoting mindless activities. I see kids who spend every free moment in front of a computer screen or a video game console. I love video games, but I'm 31 years old. A child's mind needs intellectual stimulation that only another human being can give. Something gets lost when there is a television or computer screen used as the go between. No actual interaction is required. Relationship skills are lost in the convenience of checking up on someone on a social networking site. Nothing is required, and nothing is gained. My grandmother may have taken 20 years off of my life with her second hand smoke, but the time spent in the haze produced a man that is more content with his station in life. Once the smoke cleared, I realized that I was ready to sit back and 'smell the roses' of this life. I am in no hurry. There is a whole big world out there and I will not stop until I have taken in as much of it as I can. I will not rush around as this life passes me by. Kartherine Aug taught me that the way to knowledge and contentment was through sitting still and taking in the world around you. I intend to do just that.