From generation to generation, love flows like a river.
Take a walk down memory lane to your childhood days. Remember how your grandfather taught you to plant flowers and prune trees in the garden?
Or how you sat in the kitchen with your grandmother, baking scones and preparing a delicious meal for dinner?
My favourite moment was plaiting my grandmother’s hair. She appreciated the efforts I made to make her look beautiful.
Years later, I still plait her hair and still drive her to the hair salon to have her hair washed.
My grandmother is turning 85 in a few months’ time. Nowadays, I find that my seven-year-old daughter has established a very strong bond with my grandmother – her great-grandmother.
If you can’t locate them in the house, then you’ll find them in the garden, watering plants or planting seeds. If they’re indoors, you’ll find them washing dishes together or knitting.
My grandmother is the most feared woman in the family, even by her own siblings. This is because she is very firm and stands her ground.
She’s not easily convinced, but she’s one person who can assist me in persuading my mother on matters we don’t see eye-to-eye on.
The bond between grandparents and their grandchildren is magical and treasured. I remember how at times I would forget to do house chores, such as cleaning the bathroom or polishing my school shoes.
My mother would reprimand me, and my grandmother would appear from nowhere to calm her down. “She is just a child. Please bear with her, she is not like us. Give it some time.”
Early in my teen years, my grandmother retired. This meant we had more time to ourselves.
More often than not, this loving woman tried to make my childhood exciting. She would walk with me to the library, run a bath for me, and polish my school shoes.
To this day, I still make the best banana loaf and scones. You know why? Because her magical hands taught me the art of baking.
Now, she lives 124km away from me. Following the passing of my grandfather last year, we’ve tried to move her closer to her children and grandchildren in Jo’burg,.
History is re-writing itself. The bond between my grandmother and my daughter is phenomenal. My grandmother still polishes my daughter’s school shoes. She still bakes scones with her.
What’s more heart-warming is her interest in teaching and assisting my daughter with her Afrikaans homework and reading. I find myself amused by their playtimes.
My grandmother helps the little one with bathing, feeding and playing with her dolls, and tidying her bedroom.
Their friendship is out of this world. Much like their little disagreements, when one is forced to bring peace between them.
We always look forward to hosting my grandmother for a visit. One thing she constantly reminds us of is the importance of prayer.
Despite being taught this at school and adapting well to it, it becomes a battle between her and my daughter as to who will say the prayer for food and before bedtime.
I’m grateful for the bond I share with my grandmother, which has overflown to my daughter. We live in modern times, where technology has taken centre-stage, yet my grandmother’s teachings still play a significant role in the upbringing of my daughter.
My grandmother has the privilege of being a parental figure, only with the option to return-to-sender when there’s “trouble in paradise”.
She may not be my daughter’s primary caregiver, but the life lessons she teaches her grandchildren and great-grandchildren are invaluable and continue to build a solid foundation for us.
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