Recently I spent time with my 3 oldest grandchildren. Grandchildren are one of the joys in my life today. To be a grandparent is to find yourself in a new place. Both your perspective and your role in the dynamic of their development is different. Certainly I spent more intensive time with my own children. I saw their daily development up close and personal. Years of resources were devoted to my children's growing years and in comparison I barely know this next generation. And yet the bond is unmistakeable. So what is it?
In keeping with my blog pictures I thought it would be a good idea to take a picture of our hands together. After all hand pictures are my thing right? Looking at the result here is what I see. These three grandkids are a blended set of siblings as so many are today. Not genetically related they have formed a family because my daughter met a good man and the kids then found each other. I was not present for the birth of all three. I have known the youngest since birth and met the other 2 as young children. But they form a family unit and to me there is no difference. And in my picture all 3 hands look surprisingly similar. Three different ages. Hands that are still so young. Two boys, one girl. But perhaps shared experiences make hands similar? In comparison my hand looks different. From a different family. And of course older, making me realize that those young hands will do things mine never will. They will be able to reach across to generations and times that I will never see.
So it's not just today's bond with these 3 hands that means so much. It is the unseen connection to the future and things unseen. There is the power of love and the gift of time travel in these hands.
In keeping with my blog pictures I thought it would be a good idea to take a picture of our hands together. After all hand pictures are my thing right? Looking at the result here is what I see. These three grandkids are a blended set of siblings as so many are today. Not genetically related they have formed a family because my daughter met a good man and the kids then found each other. I was not present for the birth of all three. I have known the youngest since birth and met the other 2 as young children. But they form a family unit and to me there is no difference. And in my picture all 3 hands look surprisingly similar. Three different ages. Hands that are still so young. Two boys, one girl. But perhaps shared experiences make hands similar? In comparison my hand looks different. From a different family. And of course older, making me realize that those young hands will do things mine never will. They will be able to reach across to generations and times that I will never see.
So it's not just today's bond with these 3 hands that means so much. It is the unseen connection to the future and things unseen. There is the power of love and the gift of time travel in these hands.
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