Frank

My cell phone rings. It's Grandma Shroyer.

"Hello," I answer.

"Oh, Shawn?" grandma replies.

Good ole Grandma Shroyer. I'm the only person who's ever picked up my phone when she calls, yet she always seems surprised when I answer. But, that's my grandma - the sweetest lady in my life. Since the day I was born, Grandma Shroyer has played the role of two grandmothers for me and my sister and later on she became three grandparents in one.

But before I tell why Grandma Shroyer has been such a special person in my life, I don't want to give the impression that my other grandparents bailed on me.

About a month before I was born, my Grandma Clark died after a long battle with cancer. So, right from the moment I entered the world, I was without one grandmother. There's no doubt in my mind that Grandma Clark would have been every bit the grandmother Grandma Shroyer has been; she just didn't get the chance. And maybe that's part of the reason Grandma Shroyer has been such a caring grandmother - she didn't want me and my sister to feel shortchanged.

My Grandpa Clark was a great influence in my life. Although stoic at times, he helped teach me respect for my elders and how to be thankful for what I have. He was a Nebraska farmer, so his lifestyle was anything but flashy. He may not have been well educated, but he was one of the wisest people I've ever known.

Trips to his farm meant rides on his combine and three-wheeler, running around from barn to barn on his property, playing board games and listening to him read the "funnies" in the newspaper.

I miss those trips and I wish Grandpa Clark were around today as I become an adult and it makes me sad that my children will never get to know him. Just before my senior year of high school, he lost his battle with cancer.

(I should probably mention that Grandpa Clark did remarry when I was young, so my sister and I had a female influence when we visited him. However, since his death, our memories of his widow have soured.)

Grandpa Shroyer, on the other hand, has never been as rational as Grandpa Clark, but in a way, he's taught me just as many life lessons.

Grandpa Shroyer's influence on me has mainly revolved around sports. When I first started playing baseball and basketball, he taught me everything he knew, helping me with my hitting or shooting. And while he's shown me many ways I don't want to live my life, one positive example he's set for me is loyalty to family. He's always been there for his three sons he's always been there for me, too.

And right at Grandpa Shroyer's side for the last 50 years has been Grandma Shroyer, which is worthy of a Nobel Prize in itself.

Unlike my other grandparents, though, when I think of Grandma Shroyer, I don't think of one moment, or even a handful of them. Instead, I just kind of smile to myself. It's impossible to fit the fondness I feel for my grandma into just a few memories (or even a blog, for that matter), but I'll do the best I can.

When my sister and I were in grade school, the only time we could really visit our grandparents for an extended period was during the summer, so we'd usually stay with them for about a week every summer.

Every day grandma would take us to a different park to play at, or she'd take us to a movie, or we'd go to the zoo, or we'd just go on a walk or a ride bike. But our favorite thing to do with grandma was go to the local pet store.

We always started by the rats and tried to decide if they were cute or not, then we'd move on to the rabbits and other rodents. After that we'd go see the birds and try to get the parrots to talk to us. Then we'd pass the fish, frogs and lizards, but we didn't care so much about them because the snakes were next.

It never failed, no matter how much the snakes creeped us out, we always looked into every snake tank and my sister and I were never brave enough to peer into the case with the 15-foot python unless Grandma Shroyer was with us. After the snakes, we'd check out the featured animal in the large cage in the center of the store. More times than not, it was some kind of monkey. Then we'd conclude our visit to the pet store at the dog and cat kennels.

That's what's always been special about Grandma Shroyer. Every day she wanted to do something different to entertain me and my sister, but it's the simple routines we had with her that I remember most. For the few days my sister and I spent with her every summer, it didn't matter if my summer baseball team wasn't very good, nor did it matter if the teacher I was supposed to have the next school year was a tough one. All that mattered was that we were getting to spend time with grandma.

The same holds true today. Between school, work, bills, tying to have a social life and thinking ahead to finding a career after graduation, life can feel pretty overwhelming at times.

But when those times come, almost on cue, my cell phone rings. It's Grandma Shroyer.