by Sam E. Jones

Created on: September 22, 2010

One of the great things in life is living long enough to raise your kids and then to be around when your kids have kids. Being a grandparent is in some ways, better than being a parent because you get to have all the fun and joy that is to be found in loving your grandkids without the burden of responsibility of raising them.

Few things can compare to the pure happiness of being with your grandkids, especially when they are very young. To watch them shortly after they come home with the new mom, whether she is your daughter or daughter-in-law is such a blessing; to see the happy glow of new motherhood and the precious thing that is your new grandson or granddaughter; it’s difficult to describe but it’s a feeling that almost all new grandparents feel; a sort of mixture of pride all mushed together with memories of your own son or daughter at that age. All those feelings come together and you feel at times as if you’re going to burst with emotion.

And then, as the child grows older you are able to be a part of a whole extended family unit, but this time as the older and wiser grandparent; the one who has the time to get down on the floor and play, or who isn’t embarrassed to make silly noises or to boast about your precious grandchild’s exploits as if none of it were ever done by any other child before. And more importantly, mean it, because it’s your grandchild you’re talking about.

There are so many new things to discover in being a grandparent; so many things you were never able to see when you were raising your children because you were so busy being a parent or working. Things like the wonder in a newborn’s eyes; or the way they smile at you, suddenly out of the blue. Or the way your insides melt the first time they call you nana or gampa. And it’s a beautiful thing when you discover that as they reach their early teens that you might be one of their closest confidants because you have always been on there side and never had to punish them or yell at them for the mistakes they’ve made.

There is a joy in being a grandparent; a simple kind of joy that comes from just being a part of the natural world; of being with a little child that delights in your company, that listens to you with rapt attention because everyone knows how smart grandparents are.

Learn more about this author, Sam E. Jones.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.