I recently had a minor surgery that left me limited in my activity for a month. I was forced to relax longer than I wanted and left incapable of lifting anything over ten pounds. I thought this was a loose guideline, but quickly found out it was not. This restriction was perplexing in a huge way. I have a 14 month old baby that requires lifting. He also weighs well over 10 pounds. My husband and mother were left scrambling for solutions to the conundrum:
We can put the baby on a pallette on the floor for his naps.
We could have someone from church come over every day to lift him into his bed, into the car, into the highchair
We could have a friend pick up the other two boys from school
We could have her feed him in the floor
The lists went on and on until my grandfather offered to drop all he had going on and come be my arms for the next four weeks. I was so relieved. I knew none of the other solutions would be good and so did they. We didn’t want to inconvenience him, but……….
Before I knew it, my dear grandpa was here taking up my duties. He carried my laundry basket around for me. He put the baby in the crib, in the highchair, in the carseat, on the changing table…….you get the idea. At first it was so hard for me to ask him to do it. It went against every fiber of my being to have my grandfather do all my jobs. My second child even said one day, after I had asked grandpa to put the baby in the highchair, “Why you making PaPa do all the work???”
We spent the days watching Bonanza, Dick van Dyke Show (I so think that guy is creepy), Sesame Street and Phineas and Ferb. We talked about the Lord, His love and His Word. We remembered my grandma and talked about how much she would enjoy my baby boy that she didn’t get to meet. Second-born beat him at Candyland about 57 times. The oldest told him all about school and the books he was reading. The best part of it all was watching him bond with his namesake. The baby and he had a blast together. They laughed, they played horsey, they read and they cuddled.
It was a refreshing and awesome month. I got such special one-on-one time with my grandpa. He stepped up to rescue me, but this certainly wasn’t the first time. My dad passed away when I was 16 and my grandpa stepped up. He filled in for my dad in such a graceful way, I didn’t recognize his efforts until I was grown. He took me to school. He came to visit me when I was in college. He walked me down the aisle at my wedding and danced the father/daughter dance with me at the reception. He was always there and still is. Whether it be a phone call when I need a pick-me-up, advice for life or a well timed check in the mail to just “help us out a little”, he has been there.
So, here I am, and he isn’t here at the house anymore. I’ve had so much fun having someone to talk to all day long while Ric’s been at work. I have been dreading tomorrow morning for about a week. I have a feeling a little 14 month old baby is going to look for a great-grandpa that has been there for a whole month, and look a little lost when he can’t find him. I know he’s just a phone call away and I will even see him in about a month, but it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. I will forever be grateful for the time we have spent, not just recently, but my whole life long. My father left some huge shoes to fill when he passed away, but if I couldn’t have my dad, I’m so blessed to have my grandpa.