grandparents

Becoming a grandparent makes getting older something to look forward to - all the fun of parenting, without the hassle.

Forged in the Fire
There was something not quite right about the window. My family thought nothing of it. When they’d been confronted with my unease over the peculiar panes, they had merely reminded me of my tendency to remember things wrong. We all knew that I was a girl known for hyperbole and metaphors that only made sense to a madman. My vision of the world was often too fantastical to align with reality when the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia were removed.
By Clementine Crow5 years ago in Families
Coming Home Again
The Old Barn There was something about a rainy day in the little mountain town that Dustin Henry called home. It was raining the day he left the little farm. It seemed only fitting that it would be raining when he came home. A gentle, cleansing rain that gave the air that awesome scent he had always loved…the smell of the earth right after the rain.
By Linda Rivenbark5 years ago in Families
The Barn of memories
Emin had slipped away from the procession of grieving family members to finally see his great grandfather's barn. Emin and him would always sit in the senior home while Amar would recount his hundred years of life. Many of those stories included this old run down barn. It was a disappointing sight to Emin, phase he had built it up in his head. The barn was smaller than the other barns in the area, parts of the roof were caved in and it looked as though something wild had made its home way towards the back of the barn. ‘Could his great grandfather have agadrated all those tales?’ Emin wondered. He sighed and turned to leave when the wind picked up and his head began to spin, then everything went dark.
By Destiny Hughes5 years ago in Families
Grandma's Barn
I always loved visiting my grandmother. She lived in Woodstock, Connecticut, the northern part of the state that is usually left unconsidered when people think of it. Unlike the southern coast of the state, it is unadorned by large cities with busy commuters. Instead, it's a forested landscape doused in small valleys, accompanied by rolling hills and stunted mountains, and dotted with farmhouses and wild berries, with the occasional quaint town in between.
By T.F. Hall5 years ago in Families
The Hay Barn
The old barn stood silhouetted against a steel grey sky; rain battering on its red corrugated roof. It was the biggest structure on the farm; built tall to accommodate towering stacks of hay which is why I always knew it as the hay barn.
By Kara Fleur5 years ago in Families
A Boy and a Burning Barn
“Okay I want to hear what happened, but if you make stuff up I’ll know.” Billy Stubbs wouldn’t know the truth from a fairy tale, but there’s no need to stretch this story, and I told him that. We swapped sandwiches. I don’t like tuna. Billy hates peanut butter. “Ma sent me to stay with my Grandma for a month. She’s old and she could use the help.” Billy nodded. He asked to hear about the barn. I knew he would. But I was in no hurry.
By Paul A. Merkley5 years ago in Families
I Still Remember
I never thought that I could be so emotionally attached to a building. A building that’s old, a building that’s falling apart, but here I am standing in front of the old barn on the back side of my property; tears rolling down my cheek, waiting for the contractors to come and tear it down, along with all the memories it holds.
By Madelyne 5 years ago in Families
Mangaw's Quilt
Everyone has that moment in their lives that etches itself into their memory. Be it good or bad, it is just something that stays with you no matter how old or how forgetful you become. As I get older, some of the memories become fuzzier or I forget the facts, but the underlying remembrance is always there. That is one of the reasons that I take pen to paper. To put down memories that I will likely forget soon.
By Stephanie Lewis5 years ago in Families
Being a caregiver in times of struggle
Caregiving takes a lot of time and energy, so it's important to be organized and well prepared. If you're not currently a caregiver, chances are that someday soon you will become one. It requires an enormous commitment of time and energy but luckily there's some advice out here to help make the process easier -- get organized by finding resources for your new caregiving journey!
By Connor K. Fletcher5 years ago in Families
Suspenders for Sale
Grandpap used to think that suspenders were the bee’s knees. We never did understand how the joints of an insect were the equivalent of something so special, but Grandpap knew that holding up one’s pants was a sacred duty. No one saw him without a pair; I think he used to wear them when he went swimming in the lake as well. He had a different color for every outfit he owned, and then a few more. They were leather, cotton, polyester, and a few other materials that I haven’t figured out. Overall, they were the most important part of his appearance.
By Barb Dukeman5 years ago in Families
Grandma, how are you?
I started to mourn my grandma since I was 7 or 8 years old. I vividly remember that day in elementary school, in a remote city in North-West China, we were learning ancient Chinese poetry about the poet's dead wife. The sadness hit me like a brick wall and I couldn't breath for the whole class, young and stupid me was suffocated by the heaviness of not being able to see someone, especially a love one, forever.
By Eleanor Foxtail5 years ago in Families
Hooked On a Feeling
My grandma was the queen of crafting. She could whip up a queen size Afghan quilt in a couple of days, or sew together scraps to make a rag rug in a heartbeat. She would often cross stitch several projects simultaneously, my least favorite being her fly swatters. They were made from metal hangers, with cross stitched sayings like "Don't Bug Me" stretched out across the top...and when I was misbehaving, flies were not the only things she swatted.
By Allison Keller5 years ago in Families