Mr. Rogers said, "Each generation, in its turn, is a link between all that has gone before and all that comes after. That is true genetically, and it is equally true in the transmission of identity. Our parents gave us what they were able to give, and we took what we could of it and made it part of ourselves. If we knew our grandparents, and even great-grandparents, we will have taken from them what they could offer us, too. All that helped to make us who we are. We, in our turn, will offer what we can of ourselves to our children and their offspring."
Yesterday morning, this was the reading on my thermometer on the kitchen windowsill. The outdoor sensor is in a protected spot in the back yard. Twelve degrees is WAY colder than normal for any winter day in Hartwood, and off the charts for November, but I count my blessings that we didn't have it as bad as many other parts of the US.
Grandparents are both our past and our future. In some ways they are what has gone before, in others they are what we will become.
Temperature at about the same time today ... twenty degrees warmer than yesterday.
Me: I never really knew my grandparents in person. They lived in southern California. As an Army Brat (a label that I wear with great pride), we only lived in California for two very short times when I was very young, while my father was deployed overseas. Other than that, I only remember seeing my grandparents when they would come to visit us or we would visit them. Most of what I know about them has been shaped by old photographs and stories told by my parents.
My daughters, on the other hand, have always lived close enough to their grandparents so they know each other very, very well. Each daughter has real memories of spending time doing everyday things with grandparents ... things like cooking, or bike riding, or sleepovers. Thanksgiving and Christmas were, and still are, filled with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. This is the way that my husband grew up, and it is perfectly normal for him that our children have such a close relationship with so much extended family.
Our grandchildren live a short 18 miles away in the next county ... close enough for my husband and me to be a true part of their lives ... and, for this, I am infinitely thankful!
************
During the month of November, I plan to share wisdom from Mr. Rogers with you each day (from the book "The World According to Mr. Rogers") ... Mr. Rogers's words accompanied by everyday images from life here at Hartwood Manor ... this place that I am blessed to call HOME.
