“Your sons weren’t made to like you. That’s what grandchildren are for.” – Jane Smiley
The boy is seven.
He hangs his clothes on the floor with no regard for whether they are clean or dirty. He leaves string cheese wrappers in the family room, never learns to turn off the TV, frequently forgets to flush the toilet and makes his own breakfast, leaving half of his chocolate milk on the kitchen counter and Cheerios splayed across the floor.
He’s only seven.
As grandparents we are constantly reminding ourselves to be patient. He’s still trying to learn things his father never quite got the hang of. Or maybe he’s not trying and that’s the problem.
But it’s not our problem, it’s his dad’s.
I was pecking away at my computer one early morning recently when Isaiah came in wordlessly, picked up the phone from my desk and rang his dad’s room on the intercom.
“Dad? Would you come get the peanut butter for me? It’s too high in the pantry and I can’t reach it. — Okay, thanks.”
“Isaiah,” I said, “I would have gotten the peanut butter for you.”
“I know, Grandpa,” he said with a new, impressively mature tone to his voice.
“I just figured Dad needs to get up and get ready to take me to school.”
Whether you call that learning the art of diplomacy or of manipulation it is something that gives grandparents a special sense of appreciation.
Oh, yes. It comes around.
© 2008 by David L. Williams, all rights reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment