My grandparents have been taking care of me since I was young. They were born poor; my grandmother, the oldest of nine siblings, and my grandfather, part of a family of five. Still, the two have two different backgrounds, making them the people they are now. I believe in grandparents also having the capability and compassion to be parents.

My grandma was born in the countryside, along with her eight siblings. She was born the oldest and had a lot of responsibility. When she was 9, the Korean War started. She still tells me how she ran holding a rice cooker on her head, one of their only valuables. She tells me how she ran for her life.

After the war ended, she settled in a different place in the countryside and started a completely different life. The war did end when she was 12. She started working at a hair salon, where she learned to become a hairstylist. Along with that, she learned how to care for everyone. After the war, her parents would work 19 hours a day. She had to be the parent of her siblings. She would care for each of them as soon as she returned from work. Then, she would cook food for everyone. She still tells me, "cooking is my way of showing care." 

She would always cook so much food - there would always be leftovers - to prevent this, she decided to cook for her hamlet, which consisted of around 20-30 people. She would come from work around 2 pm every day, and from then, she would cook everyone's dinner. It didn't take her too long to become the town's chef, and everyone thanked her for her generous mindset and for sharing her food with everybody else who was working to stabilize their lives after the war. My grandmother's way of showing love was cooking, but my grandpa couldn't be more different. 

My grandpa was also born in the countryside, with two siblings, and he was the middle child. The war also affected him. When he was 16, the Korean War started. He was in school when the war began. He had to enlist as a soldier and had to leave his family. My grandfather was an academically successful student. However, after the war ended, he was past the age of a student, so he had to start working. He survived the war, and after ten years, he met my grandmother, who he would spend the rest of his entire life with.

My grandmother and grandfather started a hair salon together, where my grandmother worked as a hairstylist, and my grandfather worked as the CEO and the cashier. My grandmother would also cook for the other workers, as well as her children. I think my grandparents got their caring personality from this. My grandfather also allowed the workers to sleep in their house if they didn't have a place to stay at. I think it is their amazing background that makes them the grandparents they are to me.

My grandparents are in most of my memories, including my first-ever memory. When I was born, they would come over to my house every day and bathe me and take care of me while both of my parents were working. Then, starting from the age of 7, my parents started to travel a lot for their work, and during that time, they stayed over for most of the year to take care of my sister and me. Now, they live with us to take care of us.

Every morning, I am excited about my breakfast and my grandparent's hugs. Every day, I get home excited, smell the new food, hug my grandparents, and spend time with them. Yes, my parents are my parents, but I believe in grandparents also having the capability and compassion to be parents.

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