Another Chapter Begins

Like many people I fill out a calendar each month to try to keep track of what is going on.  At the end of each month I update it with notes about what happened each week, and then I file them for future reference. This is one of those weeks and months that will be indelibly etched in my memory.  I don't have enough highlighter or exclamation marks.

 

There are a number of less significant items that happened.  I picked up my new company car.  I put on a webinar for my team at work.  I spent the week in Texas and spent some time with my middle son.  And I met newsman Elliot Davis without being chased (he seems like a great guy).  But all of those are trivial.

 

Not so trivial is the fact that this is the week my baby girl moved out into an apartment.  She has lived alone before while attending Mizzou but this week we helped her move out into an apartment that is happily not far from where we live.  She is in her mid-20s and has a good job and it was time. 

 

Since my oldest son is married and living in south St. Louis and my middle son is living in Houston we are now empty nesters.  It has been a long time since it was just the two of us and this will be an adjustment, albeit a happy one. And so this marks a new chapter in our life, which is certainly enough to make this a special time.

 

But the even bigger news is that my son and daughter-in-law have announced that they are having a baby. I am going to be a grandfather.

 

We are thrilled. They are going to be great parents and they are ready for the challenge and it is time for a little human to come into their lives, and ours.

 

I can't help thinking back to when we first had Eric. We were young and foolish and I know I was not a perfect father but we loved our kids and we were enthusiastic and idealistic and it was one of the very best times of my life.  We changed diapers and read books and watched Pooh Bear and played with trucks and blocks and puzzles.

 

Now everything has come full circle. The process will repeat itself. I have done my biological duty and the bloodline will survive. I knew this day would come but now that it is here I am still not sure what to think.

 

I think of my Dad, aka Grandpa. I think of my own Grandfather and my Father-in-Law and those are the templates I have. I will draw a little from each.  I will once again need to learn how to play with blocks and trucks and puzzles but I am pretty sure those skills never go away.  I will have to learn all of the new shows so I can talk about Frozen instead of Captain Kangaroo.

 

I wonder about this new little person, not yet arrived. A little girl or boy will come forth with genetic material unique from any other, and in my experience, with a personality all their own.  There is so much to anticipate.

 

This little boy or girl will have the awesome responsibility of being the oldest cousin in what will hopefully be a big group of cousins.  Hopefully I will have the pleasure of introducing him or her to their great grandmothers.  We are all a little sad that the great grandfathers departed before getting to know this next generation.  They would have been beaming.

 

I realize that this time I will not have the primary responsibility. I will have a supporting role. Mom and Dad will admonish Grandpa on all of the do's and don'ts and then drop off their precious little bundle for a few hours of alone time. It will then be my responsibility to fill the kid full of sugar before they return.

 

Primarily it will be my job to impart a little wisdom and perspective. I have about 7 months to gain some.

 

I may not have been a perfect parent but I must have been lucky. I ended up with 3 great kids, who are intelligent and respectful and who somehow ended up with character and integrity. My son added a great daughter-in-law to the mix and so this new addition to our family will start out with a great support system.

 

We are thrilled and excited and the months will fly by before we know it. There is a lot to think about. Just when you think life is just spinning around the same loop over and over you get a curve ball that reminds you that change is part of life. 

 

I need to find a big red marker for my calendar. We just started a new chapter. I am going to be a grandfather.