Life Lesson

So as some of you may know and for the others who may not, my grandfather was in the hospital from January until a little less than a week ago. Since the day he went into the hospital, I was thrust into a situation that I was not ready for nor was I eager to accept. I was responsible for the daily care of my grandmother, the monitoring of my grandfather's life threatening condition, the household itself, recovering finances and making some very difficult choices. Now these aren't common things that a 23 year old who just finished college typically deals with. In addition, I still had to manage my own responsibilities and not drop the ball on any of those either. It was during these months that I was not only responsible for my own well-being, but also the lives of the two people who essentially raised me from when I was young boy.
Well today, those 6 months of stress, frustration, and worrying culminated into one moment of sheer relief and gratitude. The day started off like any other day off from work for me: shower, make breakfast, and run errands for the household. However, when I sat down for breakfast my grandfather joined me this time. It was an unusual occurrence because he had been gone for so many months.
He just looked at me and said, "Shaun..I really let everything get out of control. Even before I went into the hospital, things were a mess. I'm sorry I put you into this situation, but at the same time I'm glad because you saved both your grandmother and I. I sincerely want to thank you. I hope you learned a lot of life lessons from this."
It was in that moment I just relieved. I finally felt like everything was under control. I had done it. I didn't need his apology or his thanks to feel that way, but I felt that the man who navigated life all those years was back on course.
To him I simply replied, "You're welcome. After everything you both did for me, what I did the last few months still can't even begin to compare to."
After a short pause, I continued, "I did learn a lot from this. I know that when the time comes I will be ready to manage a household and care for a family of my own. Instead of just being given the advice like most twenty-somethings preparing to venture out onto their own, I've actually lived the life for a short time."
Now as I sit here, I know they're still not out of the woods and it's going to be difficult and I'm going to have to be the strong one in the family. I'll probably still get upset and frustrated when things don't seem to pan out as I want or life throws me another curveball, but I can't let it hold me down. It's in those times when I'm feeling down and out that I have to remind myself that I'm not only responsible for my own life at this point, but the lives of two other peoople. I've managed a family, maintained a household, and brought them out of very difficult times. One just has to keep pushing and just simply make it happen, regardless of what stands in your way.