So...Now you're a Grandparent!

So...now you're a Grandparent!

Now that I am a grandparent I can honestly say that being a parent is one of the hardest things you'll ever do; but in exchange, parenting teaches you the meaning of unconditional love. Proof of this fact is that every parent thinks their little bundle of joy as the cutest, smartest, most magical being the universe has ever seen; that first smile!; those first steps!; those first words!

Let's be honest...we all have the Best Baby!

This phenomenon gets even more emphasized when one becomes a Grandparent. A grandparent understands how holding a peaceful, sleeping baby can bring tears to your eyes; in the comfort of your arms, how is it possible to love so deeply? Though we know from a distant, foggy past that challenges will arrive, holding a baby close seems more like a dream you never want to end. Grandparents know that the moment you inhale their sweet baby scent that you can't hold those minis close enough; kissing their soft little foreheads and repeatedly counting tiny toes and fingers. Grandparents never tire of these phenomenons because the baby they are holding is the cutest, smartest, most magical being! See how it comes full circle?

In addition, these grandchildren can also make normally sensible people do the funniest things. Pretend to be a horse and crawl around on your knees with riders on your back? For how long? Ride up and down, up and down, up and down on the escalator and elevator at the mall? No problem. Pretend to be a patient and get pricked, prodded and poked? Your wish is my command. Allow them to "style" your hair and risk having a brush tangle? Sure! In fact, as they grow into little people, there is no limit to the surprises. Poop. Pee. Puke. Snot in your hair? Bring it on! These little pieces of DNA change our perspectives in ways that mellow, calm and humor us. And the words that exit their mouths (!) sometimes make their parents wish they could run sprints to cover those darling lips; parental exposure can happen in a heartbeat! It is a wonder to watch how they absorb, like a sponge, changing and assimilating everything around them; they become the greatest source of fascination and happiness. 

In fact, no achievement is mundane; they are short of Einsteinian proteges. 

So truly, at sixty one, I have a lot I didn’t when I was 25. No, I don’t mean cars, jewelry or any other material thing. I’m talking about the time I get to spend with my granddaughters. They are sweet and saucy, fun and games and their wild enthusiasm keeps me vibrant; I have a thrilling luxury. I don’t have to cope with the distractions and pressures of parenting and yes, although it may seem like a joke, you can give them back to their parents at the end of the day - after they've consumed ice cream, candy and cake!

I have no idea what my life would be like without these giggly, silly examples of what love and beauty is in an often uncertain world. And just saying…if you see my grandchildren, you’ll have to agree, they could be models, scientists, doctors, astronauts... because they really are the cutest, smartest, most magical beings. Carpe Diem.

                                   Change change

Ben Franklin penned the phrase that nothing is certain in life but death and taxes. It is true, there are certain occurrences that are common to everyone, ones that cannot be avoided: man cannot escape his mortality or paying his taxes. However, I would like to add another certainty: Change. You can be sure, although human nature is prone to feeling comfortable with constants, mostly unexpected and sometimes expected changes will alter our lives; sometimes with terrific outcomes and other times ruining even the best laid plans. With some changes we are overcome with excitement and happiness and others cause despair and frustration. Either way, change is here to stay. It was here before our beginning and will be here after we leave. 

Although life requires us to be responsible, we must remember that even if we were to spend every spare moment on planning, preparing and prearranging, change is inevitable. Nothing will keep life from occasionally striking down our careful strategizing. Everything goes out the window. Time stands still, moments are flattened into immobility. No one is immune. It is a guarantee. But here’s another certainty. We are programmed to pick ourselves up when life becomes suddenly scary, blowing to bits our lives. It may take some time, but we can stand up and face our challenges. Sometimes it requires grieving, or change of direction, or even reorganizing whole segments of one's life; however, impossible it may seem at the moment, we can upright, adjust, modify. Change change.

By nature, some of us are methodical and set in our ways. Change is difficult for us. Being sporadic is discomfiting. But because change is inescapable, we have to stop trying to hold it at arms length. Perhaps we need to look at change differently. Maybe change is the fuse that propels us forward into a place that’s entirely new and different than we would go. Maybe there will be another person to love or another opportunity to search. Perhaps it allows for another variation of who we are. When we realize that everything won’t always remain as it is, we give ourselves a bit of breathing room.We begin to accept change for what it is: Growth to understand ourselves.

By all means, have a plan B in your back pocket, but don’t rely on that not changing also. If nothing ever changed in life, day after day, where nothing was different, we would never have an opportunity to advance or expand our heart and mind. Without realizing it, we begin to realize that change essentially means we are alive; the ability to experience new experiences, feel new feelings, be an integral part of life around you. Sometimes it is messy and sometimes it is marvelous, but we cannot understand the one without the other.

So the next time change drop-kicks you to your knees or elates you to dance for joy, try to take a moment and reflect on the stunning, new change and follow the direction it is taking you. Carpe diem!