Some people have said, the reason to have children is to get grandchildren.
Grandkids certainly have brightened my life. My grandson called me the other day. Normally my mood is pretty upbeat but the day he called it was a bit darker than normal. Maybe it was the rain, maybe it was because I had fallen in my bathroom. I was on a late night mission and when I went to sit on the toilet, I completely missed it and banged my back black and blue, scraped my knee and had to gather my wits before I could get up. Missed the toilet? Seriously?
The instant I heard my grandson’s voice say, “Hey Gramcracker,” my spirit was lifted. Do our kids, grandchildren and great grandchildren know how much power they have? That a simple call is everything?
When my granddaughter and grandson were young, I would drive from my home in Southern California to the Bay Area to visit them.
My little granddaughter, at the age of 3, knew automatically where the camera lens was, as if it was in her DNA. And me, being a photographer, I was always taking her picture.
My grandson was the opposite. He was too busy being a boy. One time he had a toy track with a front loader on it and a tower along the track to load up the truck with “gravel.” He was 2 years old. He sat on his knees and watched the truck go around and around the track until it derailed and then he sat there trying to put the truck back on the track. I watched him do this for a good two hours. Isn’t that what grandmas do? Watch their grandkids’ every brilliant move?
During one visit, the grandkids and I played cowboys at a bar (the kitchen counter was the bar). Cowboy hats, boots and nicknames. Mine was Gramcracker. We videoed it. A real Western. Unfortunately, the video camera bit the dust. But not before they made another movie outdoors at their other grandparents’ house. When told to come in for dinner, my grandson said, “Not now, the light is perfect!” I thought he was going to be the next Steven Spielberg!
My dear friend Mabel has two grandchildren. They fortunately live nearby her and she has plenty of time with them. One day I FaceTime’d with her after she had her grandson for the entire day. I stuffed down laughter; her hair was wild, her face flushed and she had a hard time putting a sentence together! Normally she’s just knackered but that day was full of boy energy.
On one visit to my grandkids, it was time for them to clean up their mess. My granddaughter was vacuuming the small living room while my grandson was to pick up his clothes by the front door. As things seemed awfully quiet, I checked on him and found him using a wire hanger as a crane. He moved every piece of clothing from the front door to the carpet area, using his toes to manipulate the makeshift crane!
That same visit, my granddaughter came downstairs ready for school, except for her hair that was thick as as thick could be. It looked like it had been hit by a tornado. I asked her to brush her hair and she refused. I said, “You look like Ted Kaczynski.”
She stomped her foot and said, “I do not look like Ted Kaczynski!”
I laughed, and let her go to school with her wild hair. Thank goodness she was too young to know who the UniBomber was. Her hair is still crazy thick, and gorgeous. She’s now too old to be told what to do, but thinking back, she was always too old to be told what to do.
What’s a girl to do?…just love them to the moon and beyond!
Lucy Llewellyn Byard welcomes comments and shares. To contact her, email lucywgtd@gmail.com
