If my life was a bowl of ice cream, my grandsons would be the hot fudge syrup drizzled over the top.
Being a grandparent just makes life taste especially good. I have been fortunate recently to spend good times with each of my three grandsons on separate occasions, and I couldn’t feel more blessed.
A couple of weekends ago, the youngest, Canyon, spent most of the weekend with me. He is almost two and, oh my, what a little ball of energy he is. He just brings the house to life. This is not always appreciated by Bo, the old dog, who is accustomed to having things the usual, quiet and relatively inactive way around here. Bo is set in his ways and we pretty much cater to him. He grumbles if we get too noisy, whines when he wants out and pesters us until we get up and fill his food dish. The rest of the time he lies around and sleeps.
But when Canyon is here, it is a whole different ball game. To Bo’s displeasure, the little guy does some things that irritate him. He squeals loud and often, hugs him multiple times, examines his toenails, plays with his ears and tries to finger feed him his dog food. Bo haslearned that, quite often, there is a little snack left under the highchair after mealtime. This sort of makes it worth his while to tolerate the busy toddler. Although Canyon is loads of fun, Bo and I both need naps after he leaves.
The oldest grandson, Dylan, is a junior in high school. While Canyon is learning to talk, this big brother is learning other important life skills like driving a car and working to earn money to take his girl out to eat. Because of his motivation to work for date money, I have had various opportunities to get help with a few jobs around my house and yard from this tall, strong boy. We’ve cleaned the front porch, worked in the yard, moved flower pots inside, cleaned high places I can’t reach and hung wall decorations. This helps him earn some cash and is an extra good deal for me. I am getting an early start on preparations for my big family Thanksgiving gathering and, best of all, I have been able to spend a few hours working alongside this special young man who initiated me into grandparenthood sixteen years ago and who will be grown all too soon.
Most recently, I got to spend the weekend with Glendon. He is thirteen.Luckily, he and I enjoy some of the same things, and especially fortunate is the fact that he will still hang out with his grandmother some. This is true at least in the absence of compelling offers to do other things and as long as I keep plenty of food around. Glendon likes to be outdoors. He is quite the fisherman and also likes bike riding, hiking and taking nature pictures. On our recent trip together, we traveled to some beautiful parts of the Ozarks to see and photograph the fall foliage and hike along a trail to see some of the most beautiful scenery of the area. He is a great hiking partner. He carries his own pack and doesn’t complain. He is observant of nature and it is fun to watch him discover. I hope he will someday look back on our outings with fondness and good memories, as I will.
My three grandsons bring me great joy, each of them in their own way. They are at very different stages of youth, and I am glad to have them nearby so I can be a little part of it. Although I am grateful not to have the exhausting job of motherhood at this point in life, this role of “grandmother” suits me just fine.
Life is good. Grandkids make it better.
Annette Rowe is a freelance writer from rural Gentry and a speech-language pathologist at Siloam Springs High School. She may be reached by email at [email protected].
Opinion, Pages 6 on 10/24/2012