Seven Fine Days

July 27, 2009 | My Jottings

We were so blessed to have our daughter Sharon, her husband Chris and their three children come and visit recently. They were here for a week and it went by way too fast.

Life changes in an amazing way when grandchildren are added to it. Somehow they teach us to slow down and savor the moment. They also show us how quickly the years fly by, and how to focus on what’s important with the little time we have left. They have no idea they’re such delightful, effective instructors, but they are.

When grandchildren are part of your life, the things that used to seem boring or inconsequential suddenly take on new weight and meaning.

Watching a seven, five and two year-old dance in the kitchen with wild abandon without a shred of self-consciousness, just for the sheer joy of it, becomes a source of joy itself.

Taking a drive up the shore to have a Butterburger at Culver’s seems like an adventure of mammoth proportions with a king’s feast thrown in.

A simple hug from tiny arms feels like a piece of heaven on earth.

The earnest, repeated singing of “The Life of the Voyageur” becomes a ritual you know will still be intact when these little ones have grown to adulthood. Mr. McBoy is seven and wanted to hear that song too many times to count. I’m planning to sing it at his wedding.

The feminine, delicate voice of a tiny granddaughter brings a little shiver as you ponder that God gave her that voice, and knew it would bring sweetness and happy tears to a grandma’s life.

Fresh, dark red strawberries delivered by a friend, paired with real whipped cream and devoured on the back deck made a summer memory full of juicy faces, smacking lips, childish chatter and an acute awareness of God’s bounty.

Seven beautiful little beings, all of them my flesh and blood, sitting on or around me and listening intently as I read Round Robin, The Seven Silly Eaters, Miss Suzy and Each, Peach, Pear, Plum to them over and over again, makes each minute a prayer that somehow you will touch their lives for eternity.

Seeing your own grown children being loving and wonderful parents brings a sense of gratitude I can’t find adequate words for. All I know to say is, Thank you Lord….thank you….thank you!

There were many fun times as Chris and Sharon’s three little ones played with Jeremy and Carolyn’s four.

Here are some random photos from their visit: