A smile appeared on Hannah’s face. No matter how difficult life became, her grandmother always found a way to make her feel loved. The message pulled her into a familiar memory. Years earlier, after Hannah’s parents died in a highway accident, she had become an orphan overnight. She was only 12. The world she knew disappeared in a single afternoon.
Many relatives offered sympathy. Few offered help. Only her grandmother, Rose Brooks, stepped forward. Despite living on a small pension and struggling with arthritis, Rose opened her tiny apartment and raised Hannah as her own daughter. The years that followed were filled with sacrifices. Rose often skipped meals so Hannah could eat.
She secretly mendied old clothes instead of buying new ones. When Hannah earned a place in college, Rose cried for an hour because she feared they couldn’t afford it. Those sacrifices became the foundation of Hannah’s determination. She wasn’t studying for herself. She was studying for the woman who had given up everything for her.
