The Young & The Old...and Everything In Between

Today was my nephew's first birthday party. His mom held the party at one of those indoor playgrounds that I tend to have a love/hate relationship with. I love them because my children play to their hearts content without needed supervision from me, but I hate them because I'm a germ-a-phobe and I just know places like that are filled with boogery, snot-nosed, lice infested children. And when my boy comes running around the corner, licking his hands from the piece of birthday cake he just ate, before I could tell him to disinfect his hands, it just makes my stomach curl.
In attendance at the party was my grandmother-in-law (picture of me and said in law to the left) who, I'm told, is in her mid-80's, but looks like she's 114. She allegedly does not speak a word of English, but tends to laugh without being prompted at the right times. This woman sat in one place for the entire three hour party. I kept checking on her because, really....who does that?! I'll tell you who does that...a woman who has lived her entire life to experience the joy of her great-great-grandson. She was determined to watch him run around with his green balloon and toothy grin. She didn't want to miss him stuffing (and smearing) his face with vanilla frosting from his cake. She wanted to offer her lap when he was so over stimulated that he just wanted to be held. Why? Because that's what great-great-grandmother's do.

I never knew either of my great-great-grandmothers because neither one of them lived long enough to know me. The fact that I didn't know them really hasn't saddened me until tonight. It just makes me sad that I wasn't the reason for my great-great-grandmother's joy, or rather I wasn't able to give either one of them the opportunity for that joy.

What I do hope and pray for, however, is that one day, I too will be able to watch my great-great-grandson/daughter celebrate their birthdays. I know for sure that the only way for that to happen to to ensure I take care of myself now and that journey in itself will be my biggest blessing.