I’m Grammy Now
Now I'm on the other side of grandparenthood. I'm learning new parts of my heart that I didn't know I had.
My grandparents lived in Winn, right next to the old yellow schoolhouse on Rt. 2, which doesn’t exist anymore. I’d like to thank the sentimental human who opted to leave the rusty basketball hoop standing in the former schoolyard. That backboard plays a supporting role in my family’s Super 8 silent home movies. I have reel-to-reel footage of my little brother Stephen and me shooting hoops with our uncle there. We were far too young to get the ball to the rim, and I’m still grateful to the playful uncle who lifted Stephen up high for a better chance at scoring.
What if we all lifted each other up for a better chance at scoring? What would scoring look like?
My vision includes sharing friendly smiles at the grocery store, holding the door for the person behind me at the gas station, and taking a moment to chat with a fellow laundromat patron on a random Tuesday afternoon.
Each of these activities costs nothing but a little time and patience. What a generous gift it is to devote our full attention to another human when the only expectation is connection and community. How much out-of-pocket does it require to help someone feel seen? Yet we all walk away from an interaction like that with a lighter step and a brighter hope.
I witnessed my grammy doing these things when I came with her to the big town of Lincoln back in the 1970s. Her investment in friendship and community cost her nothing and benefitted everyone. She died in 1988. I’m almost the age she was when cancer took her away.
My oldest and his wife had their first baby a few months ago. I’m wicked excited, though unsure how that relationship will unfold, given our complex family dynamic. I cherish the opportunity to share my love with this precious new family member. I look forward to witnessing his journey, wherever it takes him, without judgment or criticism. I will lift him higher for a better chance at scoring.
I know how to love because I learned it from my grammy. I learned how to serve because Grammy brought me along. I learned how to see the humanity in every heart because Grammy showed me how it was done.
I will teach my grandson all of these marvelous values. I will do it because Grammy taught them to me. I will do it because I’m Grammy now.
I’m Grammy now.
Congrats, Grammy!