It is clearly not his 10th year anymore!
I love picking Evan up after school. We have twenty minutes to ourselves and since he is the eldest grandchild I miss all the alone time we used to have.
I remember spending time with my grandparents fondly. They lived in the upstairs apartment and we lived on the ground floor. Like Evan I was the oldest grandchild, my sisters are twins and four years younger than me. I always thought that I spent so much time with them because I was the ‘favourite’….. Then in late 2005, my eldest daughter Meegan had her twins, Norah and Jacob. Sometime during the next year, spent in her basement HELPING out, it dawned on me that maybe there was another reason why my mother sent her 4 year old upstairs to visit all the time.
To get back to my story…Evan and I sit and talk while we wait for his brother to get out of school. I want Evan to remember this time too.
Most of our memorable conversations these days start with:
Evan: “So Grandma….do you know the difference between a WWI and a WWII tank?”
Me: “No,” (Me staring blankly, while he explains in great detail.)
Or Evan: “Grandma, you know what black holes are " right?”
Me: “I wrote an astronomy paper in university about black holes.”
Evan: “Really?” (Looking at me with shocked disbelief, or admiration. Not sure which.)
But sometimes they are innocence busting conversations such as:
Evan: “Grandma, so about the tooth fairy…”
Me: (Now he had my ATTENTION.) “What about the tooth fairy Evan?” I mumbled when I finally could get my brainstem to re-boot my breathing.
Evan: “Well I know she isn’t real, but I don’t know how to tell mom.“
Me: “How did you FIND OUT?”
Evan: “You just hear things when you’re eleven, you know?”
Me: (Swallowing the smirk.)..”Yes.”
Next day:
Evan: “So Grandma, how was your day?”
Me: “Great and yours?”
Evan: “Well about Santa…..”
Me: “What about him Evan (gulp)?”
Evan: “I just can’t believe how much trouble mom went to the last two years, making the videos, placing the foot prints on the fireplace and finding glasses to leave on the table…”
Me: “She loves you and Gibson very much Evan.”
Last year this discussion went something like this:
Evan: Why do some kids think there’s no Santa. Do they really believe their parents can afford to spend all that money on gifts? I think we should post our video on the internet so everyone can see the REAL thing. And just where would someone get glasses exactly like Santa’s? I hope he has a spare pair. Well the elves could probably make him new ones. I bet he leaves glasses lots of places on his travels…I wonder if there is a Lost & Found for Santa glasses? …. All said in one long breath…
Me: SILENCE ... Not touching this one with a ten foot pole...
Oh to be ten again!
(LD, 2012)
