The past few mornings I have written about how things change over time. I was talking about fashion to a degree. But mostly I was just reflecting upon the past and how things seemed to be. They weren't always what I thought they were. Our perceptions change over time as well as fashion. Our perceptions are altered with each bit of new information that is added to our experience. And isn't that what life is, an experience? We all wonder what the next life will be like, what will that experience be? I thought I had exhausted that train of thought for a while when a Facebook posting caught my attention. My niece became a grandmother yesterday morning. Well now that'll take some of the wind out of your sails. I remember when that niece was born, I remember holding her as a baby. Now, she is a grandmother? Just what has happened in the meantime?
I probably need to explain. You see, this niece is the daughter of my eldest brother. Shortly after she was born I joined the Navy. I stayed in the Navy for twenty years and my brother and his family went on living there lives. Seldom did we get together over the years. In fact the last time I remember seeing my niece, Karen, she was still just a child. I think she may have been ten or twelve. Back in the day there was no such thing as social media and I wasn't a letter writer. We lost touch and track of each other. I wasn't aware that she had married, had children or anything. It isn't that she was forgotten about, just not in my sphere, inside my little world. Then Facebook comes along. I begin to make connections. Just a few years back we make that connection. Of course we don't know much about each other. It's all a very cordial thing. We are family. But Uncles and Nieces that haven't seen or spoken to one another in probably forty plus years just don't have a lot to talk about. It's only a natural thing. Yes there are skeletons in the closet and at times it is best to leave that door closed.
Anyway my whole point is simple enough. I read that proud announcement about the birth of a grandchild. I'm well aware of the feeling having experienced it myself on three different occasions. Thing is I was expecting it. I wasn't expecting to read, my niece, she's just a little girl, is now a grandmother? Just how did that happen? Well now that changes my perception just a bit. When I'm looking back it's a bit farther than I seem to remember, must've glossed over a year or two here and there. It doesn't make me feel older, it makes me feel more experienced. My degree in life just went from Masters to a PhD! Imagine that, my niece is a grandmother. That makes me a great grand Uncle. Hmm, I wonder what else I am? Yeah I probably am. Congratulations go out to all. A new history began yesterday morning at 8:29 am. And the world gained another Grandma. Did I mention that she was my niece?
I probably need to explain. You see, this niece is the daughter of my eldest brother. Shortly after she was born I joined the Navy. I stayed in the Navy for twenty years and my brother and his family went on living there lives. Seldom did we get together over the years. In fact the last time I remember seeing my niece, Karen, she was still just a child. I think she may have been ten or twelve. Back in the day there was no such thing as social media and I wasn't a letter writer. We lost touch and track of each other. I wasn't aware that she had married, had children or anything. It isn't that she was forgotten about, just not in my sphere, inside my little world. Then Facebook comes along. I begin to make connections. Just a few years back we make that connection. Of course we don't know much about each other. It's all a very cordial thing. We are family. But Uncles and Nieces that haven't seen or spoken to one another in probably forty plus years just don't have a lot to talk about. It's only a natural thing. Yes there are skeletons in the closet and at times it is best to leave that door closed.
Anyway my whole point is simple enough. I read that proud announcement about the birth of a grandchild. I'm well aware of the feeling having experienced it myself on three different occasions. Thing is I was expecting it. I wasn't expecting to read, my niece, she's just a little girl, is now a grandmother? Just how did that happen? Well now that changes my perception just a bit. When I'm looking back it's a bit farther than I seem to remember, must've glossed over a year or two here and there. It doesn't make me feel older, it makes me feel more experienced. My degree in life just went from Masters to a PhD! Imagine that, my niece is a grandmother. That makes me a great grand Uncle. Hmm, I wonder what else I am? Yeah I probably am. Congratulations go out to all. A new history began yesterday morning at 8:29 am. And the world gained another Grandma. Did I mention that she was my niece?
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