LEADERSHIP | INSPIRATION
My Grandfather — A Reflection of the Past
What our grandparents sacrificed for us
My Grandfather was born in 1899. This is a summary of his life events, the experiences that he endured, and courageously rose above.
- 1914 — World War I started, he was 15 years old.
- 1916 — The Easter rising in Ireland started, he participated and was jailed by the British Army, he was 17 years old.
- 1918— World War I ended, 22 million people died, he was 19 years old.
- 1918 to 1920— The Spanish flu engulfed the world, 50 million people died, he was 21 years old.
- 1922— Ireland became an independent state, he was 23 years old.
- 1923— The Irish civil war ended, thousands died, he was 24 years old.
- 1929— A global economic crisis triggered the great depression, millions were homeless, he was 30 years old.
- 1933— The Nazi party came to power, laying the foundation for World War I, he was 34 years old.
- 1939— My father was born, my grandfather was 40 years old.
- 1939 — World War II started, he was 40 years old.
- 1945 — The world witnessed the first Atomic bomb during WW2, he was 46 years old.
- 1945 — Soon after World War II ended, over 60 million people died in 6 years, he was 46 years old.
- 1950 — The Korean War started, millions suffered, he was 51 years old.
- 1954 (1964 the USA entered) — The Vietnam War started, over three million died, he was 55 years old.
- 1974 — The Vietnam War ended, he was 75 years old.
A year after the Vietnam war ended, my Grandfather passed away. I never got to meet him, a man who lived through and experienced so much:
- Five wars — Two world wars (ignoring many lesser-known conflicts)
- A domestic uprising — David versus Goliath
- One domestic war (civil war)
- A global pandemic
- The great depression
- Married for more than 50 years
- Had 6 children from 1928 to 1945
- Dozens of grandchildren
- Worked for the Irish Government for his entire career
- Led a team that restored Kilmainham Jail in Dublin where 16 leaders were executed in 1916
How I’d love to spend just one day with him.
By contrast, we’ve experienced a fraction of what my Grandfather lived through. What all our grandparents experienced.
They broke the mold when they made James Myers.
What have we got to complain about?
Nothing.
So shut-up, stop complaining, and let’s start building a future for the next generation of ‘grandchilder’— our Grandparents expect nothing less.
