A Grandparent's Love

It's Grandparents' Day... I love being a Grammie!  My life has been so blessed these past 17 months by my first grandbaby, Coleson...  there is just nothing in the world quite like the way my grandchild is forever woven into my heart.

I'm grateful that I had the privilege of being at his birth 17 months ago, and grateful that he lives just around the block from me... though I know I don't see him nearly enough!  I'm grateful for Facebook where I can peek in on his daily events while I'm busy studying hard at school...  :o)  Best of all I love when I can spend time together with this precious child, like here...

 

One of my favorite activities to do with Coleson is to take him on a nature walk...  finding little rocks to throw in the stream and listening to the satisfying plunk sound...  picking up leaves and tossing them off one side of the footbridge, and watching them swirl gently down to the water, then racing to the other side of the bridge to watch for our leaf to continue its journey on the other side...  picking herbs or leaves and crushing them to smell the different fragrances... and of course finding wild edibles like blackberries to eat...  mmm!  Here is Coleson enjoying fresh blackberries for the first time...  and he agrees that they are "Yummy!"

Recently I enjoyed lingering through some of the pages and artwork of a few different editions of my most treasured childhood story, Heidi, by Johanna Spyri.  Maybe because I'm a Grammie now, I was more attune this time to the love and care between Heidi and three different grandparents in her life...  her own grandfather, Peter's granny, and Clara's grandmama... and how each had such a profound influence on the life of Heidi as an orphaned child.

I've been sending a copy of this sweet story to each of my own sponsored children throughout the year... it takes awhile to find copies in their language and buy that many copies!  But I know that this is a story that will resonate with many of my sponsored children in a way that it didn't need to for me as a child, because I was raised in a secure and stable home by both my parents.  Most of my sponsored children do not have that blessing, as most are being raised by a single parent, and several of my kids have even lost both parents and live with a grandparent.

As a parent and grandparent, I want to do everything I can for my children and grandbaby, to bless them and see their life successful and a blessing.  There are many grandparents around the world who have stepped up to be the primary caregiver for their grandchild, either because of the death of the parents, or abandonment. My own dad lost his mom to death when he was just the same age as Coleson is now.  The painful loss was further compounded when he was abandoned by his dad.  I am grateful that my dad's grandparents were there for him to raise him and love him in the face of challenges of the Depression years.  I know that if needed, I would be there for my grandbaby too.

I cannot imagine the difficulty of grandparents in poverty who are valiantly trying to raise their grandchildren without adequate resources for food, clothing, shelter, education or medical care.  This blog post by Compassion arrested my attention and heart to the needs of those grandparents.  Often it is a grandmother who has to do this job alone, such as Carmen who is taking care of her three grandchildren who were abandoned by their parents.  She doesn’t have a job, so she goes out every day to find something to do, such as washing or ironing...

“I do this work because I have my three children and I cannot send them to the street to beg or endanger their lives, and I cannot just sit and wait. I have to look for the everyday bread so, I ask God for His continuous help."

http://blog.compassion.com/grandparents-raising-grandchildren-when-grandma-becomes-mom/ 

I started searching for children who are living with grandparents and who are in need of a sponsor...  in a matter of a few minutes, I found these precious children.  Each of these children represents a struggling grandparent, one who has a huge heart for their grandchild and dreams for their future that seem impossible to fulfill. But it's not impossible for us to "lend a friendly helping hand" as described by one of my own sponsored children.

Cindy Yolibeth lives with her grandmother. At home, duties include gathering firewood and running errands. Her grandmother is sometimes employed as a laborer. There are 2 children in the family.

Adolfo Samuel lives with his grandfather and his grandmother. He is responsible for carrying water, running errands and cleaning. His grandfather is sometimes employed as a laborer and his grandmother maintains the home. There are 2 children in the family.

Jacquie lives with her grandfather and her grandmother. At home, duties include washing clothes, helping in the kitchen and cleaning. Her grandfather is sometimes employed and her grandmother is sometimes employed as a seller in the market. There are 4 children in the family.




Would you consider sponsoring one of these precious children, which would also help to lift the difficult load for the grandparents who are struggling to raise them in the midst of poverty?  You will be helping to bless not only their two generations, but to bless their future generations to come.  You can be the answer to a grandparent's prayers today.