APOLOGY: I am so sorry this is late. This is a busy time of year, and I am preparing to do one more market before the freeze, when my attention will turn to cleaning out the gardens. And, I’m so disappointed I cannot find that photo of me as a cheerleader.)
Maybe not all of you remember a homecoming snake dance, but I would put money on toilet paper. Homecoming week in Huron was so small-town. The parade, the game, the candy bought, the candy caught, cheerleaders and fans in orange and black garb were so very pleasant. Oh, I forgot the toilet paper.
Trees and shrubs in the warm light of dawn, still green, draped with a good quality bathroom tissue, damp with dew, and clingy. I shielded my eyes from the sun and thought to myself, “What a waste.”
To which my son-in-law said, “If this were during Covid, we would be rolling this up.” And what a haul we would have made.
Not once, but twice, my granddaughter’s yard got toilet-papered. Bonus, it was really thick. No, we didn’t roll it up. But we thought about it.
Everyone helped to clean it up, and the paper was tossed into the recycle bin.
As I was packing up my things to head home, I found a very large ziplock bag filled with Tootsie Rolls, Starbursts, licorice, tiny bites of chocolate candy bars, and assorted sour gummy things in my trunk organizer. “Okay, I’m sure someone will eat this candy, eventually,” I thought. “It’s not like there wasn’t enough collected to last until Halloween.”
We went out to dinner one night, and I watched as my two-year-old granddaughter swooned over the young man sitting across the table from me — her sister’s friend. She even came over and sat on my lap to be closer to him.
When that older sister went to the bathroom, this young man reached over and touched Jason on the shoulder and said, “I would like to take this relationship up a level. Can I ask Elle out?”
I’m like, what? Did I just hear that? The effect on me was two-fold. First, I couldn’t believe how polite and well-behaved the young man was. It was so heartwarming.
And then I got to thinking, my first granddaughter is growing up before my eyes. My heart cracked at the thought that I may not be here when and if this beautiful young woman marries. I know, I know, it’s a long way in the future, but doesn’t every grandmother think about that day?
As far as the little sister on my lap. She blushed, covered her face, and did all those flirty things to capture the attention of the young man across from me. It was amazing how much she adores him.
Here I am in the winter of my life, remembering many firsts from my high school days. My first dance. My first date. My first kiss. My first, and only, steady boyfriend. And, I am thankful to God for small blessings.
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