A distinct phrase in a movie included “… a mysterious and compelling issue … parenthood.” The “mom” in Spy Kids 2 said this. The topic of important missions was part of the storyline. So, I think the phrase should be restated as … a mysterious and compelling mission … parenthood.
(If you have not had the opportunity to see the Spy Kid movies, don’t hesitate any longer! They’re fun and fast-paced and remind us how much fun our kids were in their ‘hey (hey Mom!)’days.”
It does not seem possible that I have 30 years experience as a mom and a few years as grandma to precious young ones.
We often hear about folks who have lived long enough to remember the radio being the family hub for entertainment. Board games and storytelling were also important family activities. Yet, both of these past-times seem almost obsolete.
With wonder I remember when my parents brought home our first television. It was a small cabinet-like package that broadcast exciting adventures with Disney, and heart-tugging stories about Lassie, all in shades of gray. Oh! I can’t forget to mention the evening news for Dad. My homework assignments often included current events. No longer did I have to refer to newspapers alone (b-o-r-i-n-g!).
The only time I’ve lived without a TV was during four years in college and for a short period after college.
It’s a remarkable how much ‘TV’ has changed in my lifetime (and I’m NOT old, kiddies). Our current TV is a thin, digital projector that is nothing like the old-fashioned sets. It projects the most beautiful, high-definition programs. Just in time for my aging eyesight, wouldn’t you know! My hubby plugged the DVD player into the BOSE, so now I have no trouble with my aging hearing either.
I get tickled when I consider America’s youngest generation. They’ll not only grow up used to a broad and enormous variety of TV shows, but also using a watch that does not tell time, or a tiny cell phone to do anything and everything electronic.
How special it would be if I could witness my grandma seeing everything through our eyes. She marveled at all she could watch on her TV, including her ‘stories’ (soap operas). Her electric wringer washer was used heavily and lasted at least twice as long as a modern ‘marvel’ washer does. Her laundry was hung outside to dry, year-round, until she could no longer do laundry. However, she never used the Kenmore vacuum that my dad purchased for her when I was a wee girl.
Being from the greatest generation and married during the great depression, Grandma did not throw anything away until it died, and she usually found another use for it afterward. Grandma is almost daily in my thoughts – I miss her so much, though she’s been gone 27 years. I like to think I’m a lot like her. Her wrinkles line my face and so I don’t mind them one bit. When I spot her glassware on my cabinet shelf, I remember the Special K cereal with bananas for breakfast in her tiny nook. Because that was her favorite breakfast, it became my favorite breakfast.
Precious photos are safely stashed away that remind me of those days of life with Grandma. Those photos are priceless treasures to me because they unlock my favorite memories. There are even dreams of faint remembrances of special times.
Even Grandma’s house, inside and out, was my favorite place to be. The huge front porch, on the Craftsman home my grandfather built for her, sheltered me from sun and rain when I refused to play inside. For years, the laundry chute from the upstairs bathroom to the basement laundry area was converted to a launching site for plastic cowboys, Indians and army men to dive-bomb Grandma’s laundry below.
In reflecting back to those days, I can’t think there was ever a time that Grandma did not have Cracker Jacks for my snack. Not to forget that we always closed each day with a small bowl of vanilla ice cream.
In my early years, at least twice a year, my cousins and their parents visited. The cousins, my brothers and I had excellent quests all through Grandma’s house and outside in her expansive yards.
Family was the most important facet in my grandmother’s life. She truly knew what was important.
There are no greater blessings in my life than the generations of family who have come before or are yet to arrive. Whether my parents and predecessors or those of my husband.
Trials have taken their toll on some relationships, but there are always reconciliation and love in my memories and dreams.
