August 2014

One Friday in August I was getting ready to go to my first job. I had heard my mom talking and saying that my grandparents were coming up to visit. Which is odd for them to just show up without planning it out a week or more in advance. We didn’t really think anything of it because they have been talking about coming up but just haven’t set a date. 3:00 rolls around and they show up and have my aunt with.

As soon as the front door was closed there was a very quiet moment which felt like hours. Then my grandpa just started crying. It was hard to understand what was happening. My great grandma has been talking about how she felt like she could die now. She outlived her husband and sister. She was always talking about how she felt like it would be alright if she died because she knew she lived life to the fullest and was happy with her life at the time. So in that moment and time I know that my mom and I had the same thought about something happening or that something already happened to my great grandma. But as soon as my mom asked “what happened to grandma” was when the whole group of us all started crying.

And in that moment was when my grandpa said grandma was fine and that it was him and he had cancer and the doctors don’t know when he will be better. In this process all I could think about was when I lost my best friend, Grandma Linda. My grandma was my best friend for the first 6+ years of my life. I lost her and I was afraid of losing my papa. Ever since then there is one thing I wish I could change. My grandpa used to hug me and hold me tight. I miss that but I wouldn’t change having him here for a hug.

The Strongest Couple I Know.

Mark and Patty Swille met in their junior year of high school. Patty was the girl who was in the front of the room taking notes on everything. She was the teacher’s pet and she enjoyed it very much. When Mark Swille came into class she was not impressed with the fact that he was always goofing off while she was trying to pay attention to the teacher. One day Mark got moved to the front of the room to be seated right next to "Perfect Patty". They don't know how they started talking but in the end Mark would go out of his way to make sure that he had M&M's to share with Patty every day for the next year of their lives together. With that they fell in love with the help of some M&M's.

 On August 11th 1979 they were married and shortly after they had 2 beautiful girls. Amanda Lynn and Miranda Mae. Mark was working at an apartment company called Dunlap Square. At the time he started working he was in Marinette, Wisconsin. After working there for a while he got moved into an apartment in Madison Wisconsin where he was hours away from is family but they still made it out in the long run. Once I was born my grandpa was working out of Marinette and my grandma at Schuettes Warehouse in Menominee.

At one point I was living with my mom in my grandparents’ house which was one of the best things I think I could have had happen. I spent so much time with them that I would have never been able to do without living there. I would have dinner with them every night and I would be with them every day. Living with my grandparents is one thing that I will forever miss. Ever since I’ve been around my grandparents have been the happiest and strongest couple I’ve ever known.

Guess what! I'm Sami

I am Samantha Jo Anderson. I go by Sami, Jo, or Sami Jo. I am 18 years old. I am from Gwinn, Michigan. Ohh you dont know where that is. I didnt either till about 7 years ago. Its a caution light and 2 gas station town. Ive done many sports. I've only stuck with one. Cheerleading was my life for 5 years and 10 seasons. I threw girls around and caught them (most of the time). School is not my game. I dont like waking up or people. So here I am. Stuck here for about 4 years just to be a teacher which is what people tell me I should do.

I am very passionate about music. I have not one favorite band or artist. I like many bands and artists. Some are All Time Low, Secondhand Serenade, Ed Sheeran, 5 Seconds of Summer, and pretty much anything that I can listen to and sing along. I still haven't been to a concert but I am planning on going to one next summer with my friends. Although I haven't been to a concert my little brother did see  Seether and Papa Roach in January. I wasn't able to go because I was away to Washington DC for the march for life.

With that being said I am going to talk about my religion. I was baptized into being a Catholic when I was very young. I then grew up and didn't enjoy going to church the way that my family did and I didn't understand why. I then understood last year that going to church every Sunday doesn't make you believe in god it is taking time out of your day to be and believe with him. I learned this the hard way. My grandpa was diagnosed with cancer a year ago this month. He was very sick and now is feeling a lot better. He is my hero and forever will be. His cancer hasn't spread in the year that he has had it and is now going to The University of Iowa for research testing because he is the first person to have stage 4 cancer and it not move or spread to different places in his body. He is the person I look up to and he is My papa.