Sometimes one of the “tragedies” of living a long life is that grandparents harbor so much love within themselves that is never really expressed to anyone. After all, the children know, don’t they? They know exactly how their grandparents feel. A grandparents’ love for their grandchildren is passionate and protective, yet at times it seems too huge and too strong for words.
And so, they let their actions speak volumes for them. They let their hearts speak through the smallest gestures possible: from how their faces light up the moment their grandchild steps through the front door, even when they are utterly exhausted, to the snacks they keep hidden away in the pantry, carefully chosen based on last week’s visit. It is found in hugs that stay a few seconds longer, and in prayers whispered in the middle of the night while sleeping grandchildren remain oblivious to everything around them. Grandparents fear for them, remember their milestones, and cherish them even on plain, ordinary days when they are not on their children’s minds.
This is exactly why this needs to be told to every single grandchild before it becomes too late. And this is what should be said to them loud and clear: you were deeply loved. Not in any obligatory sense of the word, but truly cherished, thought of constantly, and thanked quietly and lovingly. Loved during the glorious days, the troublesome teenage years, the days of growing up too fast, and even the distant ones, when busy lives separated everyone for long periods of time.
So many grandchildren understand the depth of this love only when their grandparents are already gone, and they find themselves alone in an empty house, replaying memories and noticing all the safety nets their grandparents set up for them. What peace it would bring if only they could hear the sound of those voices, echoing somewhere in the depths of memory and saying: you were the absolute light of my life, sweetheart.
Choose to be kind, even when things get hard!
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