granny

i have a friend who is going to be a grandma soon. i have another friend who is going to have her 4th child. they are only a few years apart in age and i thought i'd be a lot older or younger before saying either. it's gotten me thinking about what a grandparent is or can be which in turn has gotten me thinking about what a parent is. the old story about the grandparent spoiling the child with gifts and candy only to hand them back to the parents doesn't really resonate with me.

i just heard debbie boone describe how her mother-in-law, rosemary clooney, beamed each and every time her grandchildren entered the room. unconditional love - that's one of the links a parent and grandparent can share. parents of course need to be disciplinarians, time out givers, "no" deliverers, homework enforcers, curfew cops, and also love unconditionally, but grandparents need only be the good guys. what a great person to be in a child's life. what a great opportunity to impart knowledge, foster an interest, be a hero, enjoy sports or theater, all the while having a great time. and then bring them home.

i've been thinking about what kind of grandma i'd like to be (many years from now!). i don't think i'm the grandma walton or granny clampett type. too stodgy or too crazy. i have always had an affinity for auntie mame and would imagine i'd like to be the eccentric grandma with just a toe grounded in reality. what a great adventure life would be. and the best part of all will be the special chance to see it all through the eyes of a child again.

wwcd: i'd like to open an new window, open a new door, travel a new highway...