Not only did they keep me company after-school, sparing me from being a latch-key kid, they each were grand role models of hard work, industriousness, savings, and modesty. One of my grandmothers was a chef in her own right. She was always cooking, stirring a pot of soup or rolling up meatballs. I recall walking home from school on hot, sunny afternoons occasionally seeing her sitting on a lawn chair by the driveway. To my chagrin, she would be drying hanged meat strips for our dinner of exotic tapas. If she wasn't cooking, she was crocheting, generally while watching the daily lineup of soap operas, and on weekends, pro-wrestling. My other grandmother was a diametrical opposite. She preferred to eat her meals out. After her career as a top hospital's head nurse and nursing school instructor, and later a nurse at an assisted living home, she enjoyed a comfortable retirement. I learned the circle of life from her, watching her slow down during her later years, relishing in her hobbies of reading, sewing, and gardening. Her spirituality and wisdom would guide me for decades.
My only living grandfather frequented our home even during the seasons he wasn't staying with us in the basement. When he rented an apartment somewhere else in town, he still spent his summer afternoons napping in our living room. He lovingly chauffeured me to the library, mall, and downtown. I attribute my 500 hours volunteering at a local hospital to him, since he was the one who mainly drove me home. Like his former wife, my grandmother the nurse, he rarely cooked. Going to diners for lunch and having coffee or juice and a dessert at Dunkin Donuts were some of our pastimes. From him I learned the fine art of conversation, as he would easily strike it up with other customers seated by us.
I look forward to one day hearing what my children will say about what they have learned from their grandmother, my live-in mother-in-law. All of the hours they have spent side by side with her, watching movies, watching her cook, watching her knit... Seeing her spiritual side, her sense of fashion, her sense of humor, her kindness... Thinking about this strengthens my resolve as a daughter-in-law. The minor, or even major, brushes of disagreement we might have seem so very small in the overall picture. I continue to cherish every moment I shared with my grandparents. Reflecting on that, my children, too, have so much to gain from a loving, stable relationship with their grandmother.
My only living grandfather frequented our home even during the seasons he wasn't staying with us in the basement. When he rented an apartment somewhere else in town, he still spent his summer afternoons napping in our living room. He lovingly chauffeured me to the library, mall, and downtown. I attribute my 500 hours volunteering at a local hospital to him, since he was the one who mainly drove me home. Like his former wife, my grandmother the nurse, he rarely cooked. Going to diners for lunch and having coffee or juice and a dessert at Dunkin Donuts were some of our pastimes. From him I learned the fine art of conversation, as he would easily strike it up with other customers seated by us.
I look forward to one day hearing what my children will say about what they have learned from their grandmother, my live-in mother-in-law. All of the hours they have spent side by side with her, watching movies, watching her cook, watching her knit... Seeing her spiritual side, her sense of fashion, her sense of humor, her kindness... Thinking about this strengthens my resolve as a daughter-in-law. The minor, or even major, brushes of disagreement we might have seem so very small in the overall picture. I continue to cherish every moment I shared with my grandparents. Reflecting on that, my children, too, have so much to gain from a loving, stable relationship with their grandmother.
No comments:
Post a Comment