They are good for a lot of things. Grandmothers. They squeeze you tight at first sight. Sometimes too tight. They slip you money that Mom and Dad weren’t supposed to see. They smile even at the dumbest things you say. They are Grandmothers. Powerhouses of love…and not any kind of love. A very specific kind…unconditional love.
These amazing women we call Grandma/Grandmother/Grammie/Nana are women of experience. They have lived. And lost. At least the ones I know have. They are beautiful in their own right, inside and out. They built a life with their spouse through the hardest and best of times, and created the best world for their offspring that they could afford and manage…to teach them everything they know about how to be to be good solid parents to their children…
So that someday… they could be a Grandma or Grandpa. Parents without grief. Parents to smother with love, and occasional gifts and stories of the past to their grandchildren.
As a parent of teens and little ones, I am starting to think this is the most coveted position involving family and children. Grandparents can sit for hours and ask questions about friends, school, relationships and just walk away…not without caring. But knowing that Mom and Dad have this…hopefully. That these kids that they call grandchildren will grow into responsible adults someday with memories of weekend visits with Grandma and Grandpa, and talks about the past to apply to their futures, and what was right and wrong when they were kids and be able to laugh at how different things are today…
Grandparents are a gift.
I am writing this out of heartache for my amazing cousins who are saying goodbye to their adoring grandmother today…we don’t share this grandparent, but I immediately am drawn to write a blog for them because I absolutely dread the day…the day when we collectively have to say goodbye to our grandmother…the grandmother we share memories of good and bad together. But that day is not today…today was their day to say goodbye to this precious woman who helped shape their mother and them into the successful, beautiful people they are today…I love my cousins and wish I could hand them the courage to get through this…but someone already has…their Grandmother.
Grandparents are a family’s greatest treasure, the founders of a loving legacy, The greatest storytellers, the keepers of traditions that linger on in cherished memory. Grandparents are the family’s strong foundation. Their very special love sets them apart. Through happiness and sorrow, through their special love and caring, grandparents keep a family close at heart. ~author unknown
Karma Is A Funny Thing 