Recently, my granddaughter gave me an Emily Carr reproduction; a small 5” by 7” plaque which now hangs in my kitchen.
Rejecting all the images of totem poles and canoes in the store, she insisted on this particular plaque. It shows a wharf overhanging the water. Seated around its sides are seven obviously older people, wrapped in blankets, visiting with each other.
“That’s just like grandma and her friends,” she announced to her mom. The plaque is entitled Old Peoples’ Pow-Wow.
It’s astonishing what you become in the eyes of a younger person. I guess she doesn’t understand that as friends we can no longer toss balls back and forth to each other. Now we toss words.
Once when I asked her to write down her memories of her summer visits, she wrote “During the summer, I read books. Grandma spent her time talking to her friends.”
As much as I love talking to my friends, there was lots of time for talking to the little ones too. Although my grandchildren have been raised Catholic, I never for a moment hesitated to share my beliefs with them. They always attended both church and vacation Bible school during their summer visits. As my grandson became a teenager he taught even the grade five vacation school class for two years in a row.
One thing we did together through the summer was a daily meditation. One would read the scripture, the other the lesson. Then I would ask, “What do you think about what we just read.” Those twenty minutes together is such a special memory. At times I felt like Johnny Appleseed, planting seed that would hopefully grow and guide these loved ones in the years ahead. My grandson and I shared perhaps more in-depth conversations but my granddaughter recognized her faith journey, saying “I don’t always talk much but I believe in God.”
Being a grandparent is full of blessings … ask any one of them, they will be so delighted to tell you. But sharing your faith is the best blessing of all.
