Grandmother Interview Research Paper

I took advantage of my grandmother visit to conduct an interview about her personal life. Following his interview, I learned many fascinated facts I never knew about her before. Mrs. Mayser Fares, who is now 73-year-old, was born on October 13,1948 in her house that is in East Jerusalem. She explained back in the days’ hospitals did not exist, and everyone who was born during that period was born at home. Mayser feels fortunate because she had an opportunity to go to school for three years; other girls did not go to school at all. Mrs. Fares is described as lean, tall, have a fair skin tone, and black hair. She appears younger than her age; there are only few wrinkles on her face. She is still physically and mentally capable to take care of

all her needs.
Mrs. Fares relationship with her mom was unique. Her mother became a widow following her husband’s death, where she had three children. Her mother was only 21-year-old when her first husband died and at 25-year-old she was remarried to Mayser’s father. Mrs. Fares recalls the emotional distress her mother experienced because she was forced to give her children to her deceased husband family, after she decided to remarry. This action was not based on religion believes nor the laws; it was simply one of the cultural traditions. Mrs. Fares had six sisters, where she was the middle daughter. Mayser constantly tried to assure her mother that one day she will be able to see her children again
Mrs. Fares’s father was one of the important men in town. He was known for his kindness and great wisdom. Everyone would come to him for advice; their house was never empty of visitors. Her father was also previously married. He had four daughters and five sons from his first marriage. All of his daughters and three of his sons passed away because of sickness following birth. From both marriages, he has a total of eight children; six daughters and two sons. Her father was very attached and loved his daughters, despite the fact people prefer not to have girls back then. Mrs. Fares lived a very spoiled and pleasurable life before and after getting married.
On July 1960, Mrs.

Fares got married; she was about 15-year-old. Of course, the marriage was traditional and planned between the two families. Her husband was also young, but older than her. Mrs. Fares describes her marriage years as very lovely and pleasant. She described her husband, my grandfather, as being patient and thoughtful with her. She recalls the many mistakes she committed in the early years of their marriage. Mrs. Fares keys to their successful marriage was because they never let anyone knows the details of their personal life. Additionally, if they had issues in their marriage no one can get involved in their marriage issues. Another factor is because she remained quiet when things get heated between them. She stated, “I let him get everything out; I do not argue back because I know he has a kind heart and he never meant what he said”. Mrs. Fares gives acknowledgement to her husband for making their marriage and relationship

successful.
Within a year of their marriage, Mrs. Fares and her husband started a family. They had 14 children in total. The family consisted of five daughters and nine sons; two girls and a boy passed away when they were very young; which left them with eleven kids. This occurrence caused Mrs. Fares to feel devastated for a long time. Mrs. Fares spent most of her time raising the children, while her husband worked in the store that they owned. Now, all her children are married and have families of their own. Mrs. Fares has fifty-eight grandchildren.
Mrs. Fares never had a job or occupation. However, the chorus around the house and farm were more than a full-time job. The typical day began by waking up her husband and kids. Next, she prepared breakfast for the entire family. After everything is set and everyone went where they were supposed to go, she jumps on the heavier duties. She cleans the big house, washes their clothes, prepare lunch, feed the animals they owned like chickens, goats, and cows. Of course, there was no electricity, clean water, or transportation that assisted her to complete the tasks quicker. However, she managed to get everything done on time. When planting or harvesting seasons come, she plants things likes tomatoes, olives, squashes, eggplants, potatoes, wheat, and lentil.
Mrs. Fares enjoys sewing deeply. She claims she inherited this trait from her mother. In fact, all of her traditional dresses, which is her typical dress code, are designed and sewed by her. She actually never purchased a dress from a store that was sewed by someone else. Till this day, Mrs. Fares makes her own clothing. Mrs. Fares expressed her great loves her vintage sewing machine, which is a 1952 Singer machine. Mrs. Fares also loves to cook, where she gets praised for her excellence in cooking. People who know Mrs. Fares can affirm this talent of her. She no longer practices this hobby because her daughters-in-law are now in charge of preparing the meals.
It sadness me to announce that Mrs.

Fares is not physically well. She has a type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. She clarified how these two diseases generally run in our family. Mrs. Fares grandparents, mother, siblings, husband, and even some of her children have these diseases. Some family members tried to eliminate the chance or prevent themselves from developing these illnesses, but had no hope. Mrs. fares considered herself lucky because she was diagnosed at a much older age, while some other family members were as young as 35-year-old when they were diagnosed. Mrs. Fares believes shifting to a healthier diet, and eliminating sadness and stress helped to live longest without the diseases. However, the slight changes did not prevent her from being free from illness. It just runs in our

genes.
By comparing my grandmother’s life to my own life, I notice there are lots of difference and similarities between us. In terms of education, my grandmother did not go beyond third grade, but I graduated high school and I am currently working on my bachelor degree. While Mrs. Fares has a big family and many children, I am personally not planning to have a big family. I already have a son, and in the future I am only planning to have two more. Mrs. Fares had a successful marriage with her husband. In contrast, I cannot say the same thing about my marriage. Mrs. Fares and her husband stayed together until he passed away, which is a total of 41-years. However, my marriage lasted about 3 years.
The difference in time also plays a huge role in our lives. Comparing my life to Mrs. Fares life, the modern advantages makes it much easier to complete tasks and get work done. On the other hand, Mrs. Fares struggled on a daily basis because she did not have access to the resource I have access to. The age requirement also changed which prevented girls younger than 16-year-old to get married. Younger women like me have the opportunity to obtain higher education. Additionally, society does not judge if a woman has a job outside her house. Financial difficulties and the expenses of life forced women into the work field.
Mrs. Fares and I both got married at a young age, but she was still younger than I am. Sewing is one of our favorite hobbies. Like Mrs. Fares, I consider myself a great cook as well. I began cooking at young age because I simply enjoyed it. I can also say I inherited this trait from both my mother and my grandmother. While we cannot predict what will happen in the future, I might be certain about one thing. It is hard to admit to the reality, but I must accept the fact that there is a high chance for me to face health conditions. The reason is that both of my parents are currently struggling with their physical health. My mother is diabetic and my father has high blood pressure and high cholesterol.