A Grandmother's Love

I just spent almost a month with my four-year old granddaughter and my two-year old grandson. During that month they got up every single morning by 7:30 am and immediately wanted breakfast. They would stand outside my bedroom and gently knock to see if I was awake. I wasn’t but gamely got up and started my day. I have one son and contrary to what most moms say, parenting was not my greatest joy, and I still have some of the scars to prove it. That being said, I would endure each and every challenge all over again if its means that I get the honor of being a grandmother to my two grandchildren.

They played all day, every day. Their laugher was non-stop, and their curiosity kept each moment interesting. When you are the parent, there is so much pressure to get it right. Grandparent status is different. If they grow up to be hooligans, it’s not my fault: blame it on the parents. All I did was love them, kiss them repeatedly and sneak stuff to them that they probably should not have had. 

I marvel at the utter impossibility of my infinite love for my grandchildren. How is it that someone I have only known two and four years could hold my heart like the most willing hostage? My heart races when I know I will get to see them. I get excited like a schoolgirl with her latest crush! I love them and they love me. Their love for me sometimes shows up in the most touching, unexpected interactions. One such interaction resulted in me now claiming a teddy bear as one of my most prized possessions.

I keep the teddy bear on my dresser. When I move from one home to another, it moves with me and immediately finds its way to the same spot on my dresser. Front and center;  prominently displayed. When my granddaughter was about three,  she and her parents came for an extended visit during the Covid pandemic. She and I spent a lot of time together. During the visit she carried her teddy bear everywhere with her. Truly she loved Teddy so. When they packed up to leave, she hugged me tight with Teddy in one hand. As she took a few steps to leave, she turned around and without saying a word, she thrust Teddy at me. She was too young to verbally express what she was feeling but her eyes told me all I needed to know. She was trying to say that she had nothing to give me to let me know how much she loved me. Giving me Teddy was her way of adding some type of tangible value to what she was feeling. My heart melted. We hugged and off she went.

I love my grandchildren unabashedly. A grandmother’s love knows no bounds and it contains a different type of love solely reserved for them.

Lou