Generations... A show and tell post

Today I thought I would show you all my new plant. It isn't exactly new, but I wanted to give it a couple of weeks to grow up a bit before unveiling it to you. I know I've talked about how excited I get during the spring and summer before, and I know you've heard me gab about how much I love my flowers, but this one is super cool for me!

A few weeks ago, we went out and visited my grandparents. I love going out there and hanging out with them and I truly wish I could get out there much more often than I do. My grandparents are some of the coolest people on the earth for me and they have taught me so much growing up. My mom has always been a little critical or negative as moms often are with their first born, but my grandparents - they have always been there gently nudging me in the right direction. They always have a certain patience with me like they know it will all turn out right in the end.

My paternal grandmother taught me tons of things about sewing and crocheting. She taught me how to cook oatmeal and biscuits. She showed me how hard and rewarding it is to work a garden. She also taught me the importance of loving other people, giving to other people, and cleaning up my messes whether they be tangible or life messes.

My paternal grandfather taught me how to enjoy and appreciate the "noisy quiet" of a summer night on the patio. He taught me how to grease a bike chain and play outside. He showed me how to hunt for four leaf clovers and taught me patience alongside our hunts. He also taught me how precious people in our lives are. He died when I was twelve after a long illness and through that, I realized I needed to cherish every single moment.

My maternal grandparents taught me a wealth of things too! My grandfather showed me how to find a passion in something and work to do it well. He was a carpenter and in fact did much of the finish work on the apartment hubby and I now live in. I take joy and pride in that. I love knowing that when I touch the doorway as I walk in, his hands have been there too. He showed me how to fish and bottle feed a calf. We have both always enjoyed books but in the past couple of years, I have come to share my love for books with him. I learned how to laugh from him. I will never tire of his laugh.

My grandmother taught me how to worry. I know that may sound horrible to some but I actually chuckle every time I think this thought. I am a lot like her in many ways. I wring my hands and worry about all those silly details. I love lists and find myself writing them even when there is no need for a list. She also taught me her love for flowers. It is one that I am slow at but in the past few years I have grown a huge passion for. I call her all the time to ask her questions about my poor little plants. She has taught me secrets and tricks and, well... I try. I really do!

This love for plants has brought into my life something that all of the grandparents in their own way have taught me. These plants that she sends home with me have all connected me to my family. They remind me that I am a part of something much bigger than myself. Most often I am sent home with a pot of newly set cuttings from a plant that has spilled out into her yard or house sometimes taking over several pots scattered around.

As she tells me how she potted it and how to care for it, she always pops in there somewhere that this was one of her mother's plants. I remember my great grandmother vaguely and as a very small child I loved her very much. She was a caring person that often loved people too much for her own good. To know that the plants I have spilling from their pots onto my balcony or living room floor were started with her own hands reminds me how precious my time with my family is. My grandmother takes all of her plants into the well house each winter and baby's them through. She nurtures them and loves them, coaxing them out again as spring and summer emerge. She has managed to give me such a precious gift that now stretches out four generations. I hope that I can learn to keep that gift growing so that someday I can make it five!