Growing up as one of three boys in my family, it’s been a pretty big change since I got married, finding myself surrounded by so many women.
OK, maybe not just women, but also lots of girls.
I really didn’t know much about how to act with girls until I managed to snag this wife of mine many, many years ago. Yea, she and I decided not to mention such a big number any more than we have to, so unless you are a regular reader then I’ll leave you guessing on that one.
When we started having kids it was a parade of girls for the early years. First there was Chrissy, then Jenny, then Vicky. I still laugh when I remember my wife in the delivery room ready to have our third child. We never found out in advance whether any of the kids would be a boy or girl, and when Vicky made her arrival, I was on the phone with my father-in-law Pat, who had called to see how things were going.
I was actually using one of the early video cameras to record our number three birth, and you can hear me talking to Pat, suddenly saying, “oh no, it’s another girl.” I never have quite lived that down with Vicky.
Eight years after the girls we had our son, deciding to have one more even as the age of 40 was approaching for us both. That’s when Michael showed up.
Fast forward 20 years and the grandchildren started showing up, and once again, it seems I have gotten my share of girls.
Abby, now 15, was first, and while I drive her crazy by not answering her regular question of “Papa, just admit I’m your favorite,” we had Reagan and Jordan join in the parade of girls. So while I still have my original trio of daughters whom I am very close to, thankfully, my granddaughters are an important part of my life, giving me seven girls always somewhere pretty close.
This week I have birthdays coming up for two granddaughters—Reagan turned 10 on Feb. 9, and Jordan will be 7 on Feb. 10. I try to spend plenty of time with them, not just for them, but because I consider myself the lucky one to have these granddaughters so close to me in many ways.
Any parent knows that the interesting thing about all kids is that they are so very different—each and every one, with their own personality characteristics. And you would easily see that in Jordan and Reagan if you knew them.
But one thing these two do have in common is that God put an amazing spirit in them of showing love to others—even at their young ages, they understand how much it means to give someone a hug for no special reason, or to hear a kind word.
This past Sunday was my “birthday outing” with Jordan, so after church we spent the afternoon together in my office, working on a puzzle together for about an hour before she set up a little table next to me and made a bunch of Valentine cards for her teachers and other family members. Naturally, I made plenty of comments about her excellent coloring ability.
In the middle of our afternoon, she stood up and unexpectedly tells me, “I need to go give Mimi a hug.” No kidding—and she zipped out of the room, down the hall, and hopped on the bed with her grandmother to do just that.
Reagan is the same. We have always called her “a lover,” and it’s almost hard to understand how a young girl her age could seem so aware of showing love to others.
I’ve written before about her habit of squeezing you so hard it almost takes the breath out of you. But you can tell it’s something very special inside of her.
This Sunday I will make it a special time for Reagan and I. She will spend Saturday night here, then she wants us to go get donuts together, and after that will be some time we agree on to hang out, although I am pretty sure it will also be at my puzzle table. We jokingly tell each other we are “Puzzle Masters,” and are in our own “Puzzle Club.”
The older I get the more I understand the blessing God gives us with children and grandchildren. It reminds us that life needs to be about sharing with others, whether it is an afternoon together doing nothing special, or having another family get together.
Spending time with my two granddaughters sure makes it all easy.
Kevin Chiri can be reached by e-mail at kevinchiri@gmail.com.