Being grandparents is just about “I love you because I love you", with nothing in between.
I don’t know where I got this wonderful article. I can’t give credit to the author. I read it and understood it, copied and saved it to read again. I want to share it with you because it is instructive about the importance of being present and why grandparents are so good at it. It is an example of what we can learn from watching grandparent’s and grandchildren’s relationships. It is about the value and importance of the grandparent-grandchild connection. It is about the role of grandparents in the family. Enjoy, learn and then go practice!!!
“I grew up 3,000 miles away from my family.
Grandparents just want to hang out with the kids, pure joy.
While summers in Niagara Falls were my truly happy times as a child, I never understood the power of the day-to-day connections that come from dropping by for dinner at grandma’s house or hanging out for the afternoon with my cousins.
Our concentrated times with family meant everyone moved into entertainment mode with us around – which, don’t get me wrong, was tons of fun.
But, I always found myself wishing I lived next door.
It’s an odd feeling, being so far away from the people who are most familiar – one that I never understood until the disconnect no longer factored in.
Now, we live upstairs…and that connection I always envied as a kiddo permeates our lives every day.
With connection comes all of the emotions and conflicts that live in any close relationship – something, to be honest, I’ve always found myself a bit overwhelmed by the idea of before this. That’s A LOT of family time.:)
Grandparents have a remarkable, priceless place in our children’s lives
Of course, my anxieties became pretty darn manageable when I peek out the bedroom window on a summer afternoon to find Ken’s mom and our daughter chatting about life, laughing and sharing while tending the garden. With her – and my parents – being grandparents is just about “I love you because I love you, with nothing in between.” There are no politics or preconceived notions. They just want to hang out with the kids, pure joy.
We are not the only family to return from lives far away to discover that the breadth and depth of life comes in the form of watching our kiddos and our parents spend their days together. The Valley is packed full of grandparents who help their children raise their children – who followed family here because they understand the value of connection.
The built in babysitter and extra hands aren’t why we love them so much.
We love them because of the remarkable, priceless place they have in our children’s lives – the perspective and enthusiasm they bring to each moment with their grandchildren.
Join in the joy. Be present!
It’s all about that moment, when you catch your kiddos and parents walking hand-in-hand down the beach path and you know that – whatever is happening beyond that moment – you are witnessing pure joy.”
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