Grandpa Warren was the type of person who did not have to yell to make a point; people just stopped and listened. He never needed to discipline because no one was brave enough to disobey him. There was never an uninteresting moment in Fayetteville, Arkansas because Grandpa always had a craft in the making, an exciting escapade planned, or something to plant in the garden.
Grandpa could create anything out of wood, beautiful gazebos, benches, chairs, porches, and swings. We had friends at all the lumberyards that let us have the "Grandpa Warren" discount. Grandfather created a porch in his back yard that stood about seven feet high and wrapped around an Oak tree. My sisters, cousins, and I used to play on that porch for hours thinking of new adventures to be played out. The smell of cedar still reminds me of my grandfather and all the wonderful times we shared.
Grandpa and I loved going to the lake, park, or making an adventure out of an ordinary task. His homemade houseboat out on Hickory Marina Creek that smelled like fish was our favorite camping spot. On several occasions we would walk down the street to catch an Arkansas Razorback Football game at the Razorback Stadium. Sometimes, Grandpa Warren and I would have heart to heart talks at the park up the road from his house. In the summers we would pick up apples in the back yard for grandmother to bake us a pie. On lazy summer day we would sit in his room reading books and watching his favorite team, the Braves, on his old T.V. Sometimes Grandpa would take me to the water place where we bought our bottled water, played with the biggest dog I have ever seen, and watched gigantic gold fish swim in a tank. Looking back, the things I remember being so great and important suddenly seem small, but still wonderful.
Grandpa's large garden located at the left side of the house always had something growing. My favorite things in his garden were the mint lea