My kids, as teenagers particularly, have thought themselves superior to their parents and grandparents - considering themselves more worldly, more sophisticated, more knowledgeable, more current. We parents wait for them to mature out of those notions, smiling to ourselves about their naivete.
My cousin, a professional genealogist freely sharing her knowledge and research with the rest of us cousins, posted this picture on her facebook page.
This is my grandmother with her husband and first child. She was fifteen and he was twenty-five when they married. She's fifteen or sixteen in this picture, probably in the year 1929. She joked that she played with her dolls and her babies at the same time.
At fifteen, she knew what she wanted and she made it happen. Like most men, I expect my grandpa never knew what hit him. They had four daughters and two sons, the younger son living only a few hours. The surviving son is my dad.
My grandparents were married for forty-five years, until my grandpa died at age seventy. She died in 1995 at age 80. They lived in southwestern Oklahoma, farming in rough conditions.
I am in awe of my grandmother's determination and her recognition, at such a young age, of the important things of life.
Have you hugged or called a grandparent today?
My cousin, a professional genealogist freely sharing her knowledge and research with the rest of us cousins, posted this picture on her facebook page.
This is my grandmother with her husband and first child. She was fifteen and he was twenty-five when they married. She's fifteen or sixteen in this picture, probably in the year 1929. She joked that she played with her dolls and her babies at the same time.
At fifteen, she knew what she wanted and she made it happen. Like most men, I expect my grandpa never knew what hit him. They had four daughters and two sons, the younger son living only a few hours. The surviving son is my dad.
My grandparents were married for forty-five years, until my grandpa died at age seventy. She died in 1995 at age 80. They lived in southwestern Oklahoma, farming in rough conditions.
I am in awe of my grandmother's determination and her recognition, at such a young age, of the important things of life.
Have you hugged or called a grandparent today?
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2 comments:
Like most men, I sure never knew what hit me. Never had a chance, not that I regret a moment, dear!
And yes, your parents and grandparents, my parents and grandparents, and most from those generations we have known are admirable people. They may not be as worldly, book-educated, or "sophisticated" as we and our children seem to be, but I'm not sure we've really progressed. More and more I long for a slower and harder era. I think the hardships created a strength and character that we miss and need.
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