There are certain people in our lives who help us get by from day to day, who teach us things that supposedly help us later in life. Such a person might be a teacher who helps with our studies or a counselor who helps with personal problems, but they don't even compare to how much my grandfather taught me about life. He wasn't the wisest man in the world, he didn't know nearly what a teacher or counselor does. However, he did teach me that it's not the big things that people teach us that are the most valuable, but it's the little things they do that give us the most satisfaction. That lesson will stick with me until the day that I die!
             My grandfather always said, "a chain is only as good as each individual link bound to it, and by knowing this, Michael, you'll never take the little things for granted." I never really understood what he meant by that until the day that he died. Looking back at him laying in that dreadful coffin, I realized how much that man helped me in my life by just doing the little things. I don't remember the gigantic Christmas present my grandparents bought me in the winter of '91 or everything I did on my Colorado vacation. But I do remember my grandpa having that water gun fight with me in the front yard when I was five because my father didn't want to or the time that he and I dug up earth worms to go fishing. That's what I remember about him and I wouldn't have it any other way.
             My grandpa, whose name was Joe, had that same impact on many people. He lived in a small town called Ceresco, which consisted roughly of 300 people, located just west of Lincoln. He was born in Lincoln, but lived in Ceresco all his life. He spent much of his time after high school in the military where he was, I think an MP. After serving some years in the military, he moved back down to Ceresco to spend the rest of his time with his family. In small towns suc...