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Little celebrations and long memories

A great‑granddaughter’s birthday and an unexpected reunion provide gentle reminders of what life offers when we simply show up.

Happy Easter everyone and happy birthday Caroline.

My lovely great-granddaughter is one year old today. She is the most vibrant, intelligent, active, sweetest and beautiful one-year-old ever, but I might just be a bit biased. I am delighted to be celebrating both Easter Sunday and her birthday with her and her mom and dad. I don’t get to see them as often as I would like so really cherish the time I get.

Little celebrations and long memories Back to video

Our role is to raise our children to become independent, self-sufficient, contributing members of society, but sometimes we have done our job too well. While they are out there building a productive, cohesive family life for themselves, we still feel entitled to having more time and attention given to us. They are doing great, and I am very proud of them. I am also working on my part, which is to stay out of the way.

We all have had some disappointment, have been hurt by another and have had very emotional reactions. I have a friend who has suggested a wood chipper several times, but I tend to be more lenient only wishing some ongoing medical conditions. Maybe lenient isn’t quite the right word. I would never wish anything too deadly or quick, preferring medical ailments that causes embarrassment, inadequacy, shame, indignity and discomfort for a long, long time. I have only discussed this with very close friends and would never speak it in an outside voice for all to hear so don’t tell anyone.

I was recently invited to lunch with a group of women who are related in some way to my sister’s husband. They call it the cousin’s lunch. I wasn’t sure I should go since I wasn’t related but apparently that is not a prerequisite.

I debated back and forth, deciding not to go for various reasons and then changing my mind for various reasons until I finally elected to get out of my own way and just go. I reckoned it was a lunch out, it could be fun and, if not, would never have to go again.

We met at a Tillsonburg restaurant, and it was just like I was supposed to be there. I knew most of them from high school in Delhi, which opened up a whole torrent of reminiscing and catching up. During our school days, we were in classes together but ran with completely different crowds. After some 60 years, it didn’t seem to matter. It was interesting to find out how we travelled through our lives, each taking different paths, some never leaving home and others leaving and eventually coming home each working through good times, surviving not so good times all the while flourishing. It was also great to find we had stayed connected with school friends through all of it.

It was also reassuring to find life had not changed who we are. We might have found a new perspective or outlook based on experience or maybe just developed a different way of presenting ourselves, but we all seemed to remain true to who we are or, at least who I remember we were. It all makes one take stock of where we are in life and be proud of our strength and resilience. Our laughter resonated throughout the restaurant, I am sure.

I sure hope they invite me back.

twocentsworth40@gmail.com

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