Cake every afternoon

I just finished The Summer Book by Tove Jansson. It was one of those books I started on a Saturday morning thinking “ I’ll just read for an hour” and then I dove in and didn’t look up until it was done and my to do list stayed undone. The book reminded me so much of my summers with my grandmothers; the magical conspiring adventures you share. Studying nature and people and the indulgence of unrushed attention. It was pure magic, both those times in my life and this book. I am loving everything so far from Austin Kleon’s book recommendations on Literati.  I know not everyone has warm memories of their grandparents, sadly, but I think you might still enjoy the book as an island escape.

I am enjoying watching friends become grandparents. Some are thrilled. Some are completely mortified to even imagine themselves as grandparents. One friend asked that his grandchildren call him Grand Dude because it seemed less painful. Unfortunately for him, none of them could say Grand Dude and 10 years later they still call him Doo Doo instead. Most friends have been smitten with the joys and delights of children; that magical new baby smell and their sense of awe and discovery.  Doo Doo has rearranged his whole house and life around the grandkids for their weekly overnight visits. Others moved to HI to be close to the grandchildren growing up. Another friend decided he was old enough at their birth that he would skip the being a parent and go straight to being like a grandparent with his kids. I love seeing how some families seem to heal a bit, and soften with grandbabies. The never good enough son or daughter in law redeemed by adding this new joy to their lives, even if just temporarily. I love seeing what people teach their grandchildren, what they think is fun or essential. I laugh about the vegetarian family who’s grandmother begged to take the kids to McDonald’s every visit. I wonder if the kids I treat like grandkids believe, as I did about my grandmother, that I always have M&Ms on the table and coffee with cake in the afternoon. (Actually, I think my grandmother really might have had coffee with cake every afternoon even though I scramble to get sweets for visits.)

Grandparents Day is coming up next Sun Sept 12. I’m being sentimental, but hope you can celebrate; by Zoom, phone call, in person with your grandkids, or grandparents, or both. Or go do something fun with a friend and enjoy the tail end of summer.

Best wishes,
Rose

 Photos by Visual Stories || Micheile  and Sergiu Vălenaș on Unsplash

PS: If you're looking for something to read, and want to be part of my book launch team, reply to hello@choosemyhappyplace.com and let me know. The publishing date is in Oct.