Hoorah for Grandparents

I must apologize for stating in last week’s blog that Grandparents’ Day was last weekend. It has been brought to my attention that it is in fact this coming Sunday, September 13. All of us who are grandparents owe it to ourselves to celebrate.

            And we do have a lot to celebrate: Grandparents add a great deal to the joy of family life. Who does not remember their grandparents being the instigators of special moments in their lives: going to their house for Sunday dinner or for special occasions like Christmas, or taking a walk in the park with a grandfather who imparted the wisdom of his years, or learning to cook or sew with a patient grandmother. Now it’s our turn to fill our grandchildren’s basket of memories.

            Grandparents may be more “hip” today, more “with it”, i.e. communicating electronically with their grandchildren rather than through snail mail, but that has not changed the familial bond which is still very much cherished by both the older and younger generation. After all, grandparents fulfill a role no one else can.

            We, as grandparents, influence the younger ones’ way of looking at the world. We give the same unconditional love their parents do, but we let the parents dictate everyday actions while we have the time to answer questions (even those impossible to answer such as how old God is); to tell tales of the past (even tall tales at times!) that delight; to tell them about our own grandparents; to let our grandchildren express their worries and pains; to show them practical skills, etc. In short, we are role models and coaches who complete our grandchildren’s lives on an array of levels.

            That’s worth celebrating, don’t you think?

            Of course, Grandparents’ Day is still very much a milestone people skip over, so it’s up to all of us who have grandchildren to get our trumpets out and spread the word. It’s more than time grandparents got the recognition they deserve.