Moments and Milestones

Rose Kennedy was right.  Whether you are born a Kennedy or a Kenny, life is not about attaining milestones.  It is about accumulating moments.  Moments that produce a memory that you can revisit every now and again - even long after the moment itself has passed. 

My grandchildren are extraordinary...said every grandparent ever.  However, in the case of my grandchildren, my saying so is not a case of Pop Pop's wishful thinking.  It is a fact.  I am reminded of how extraordinary each is every time I am lucky enough to be in their company.  

Last week, the Missus and I took a mini-vacation and traveled to Colorado to spend time with Princess Abigail (and her mom and dad).  Geography being what it is, we do not see our youngest grandchild on a regular basis.  The Colorado branch of the family tree will be in New Jersey for several days next week for Christmas.  However, when they travel this direction they are perpetually constrained by having more loved ones to see than they have hours in the visit in which to see them. So, I invited Nana and Pop Pop out to see them in order to secure a nice chunk of uninterrupted time with Abby (and her mom and dad).  It was an extraordinary visit.  It was so not because of a singular thing we did but, instead, because of the time we were there, present in the moments that comprise Abby's day-to-day.  

So it is also for the time that I am privileged to spend (luckily for me on a far more regular basis) with Maggie and Cal, both of whom regularly amaze me.  Maggie, my first-born grandchild, is not yet three.  Her little brother, Cal, is not yet two.  They are, however, two of the best teachers I have ever had, which I submit is no small accomplishment given that from my first day in Mrs. Spaeth's kindergarten class to my graduation from law school I spent twenty years in school.  Maggie and Cal constantly remind me what it is that is important.  A lesson each imparts not by saying anything but, rather, by simply doing and by being who they are.  

It occurred to me - perhaps for the first time ever - as I sat writing this that Pop Pop is much more than who I became when Maggie was born.  It is who I am and who I shall be every day for the rest of my life because of my grandchildren, who they are, and what they do.  It is not something I attained.  It is something I am privileged to be. 

-AK