Growing up, I had the good fortune to live right next door to my grandparents. Many a day was spent running back and forth between my house and theirs, spending time in their company and out of my parents’ hair.
Life was always exciting there. I learned to make biscuits from scratch. Try all kinds of foods (sardines, anyone?). And ride bales of hay down the hay slide (shhh…Don’t tell my mom!).
I enjoyed so many things that would not have been possible without having them right next door.
What I didn’t appreciate back then was the valuable opportunities my grandparents provided me. They not only gave me unique experiences that my parents could not provide, but their time with me shaped my view of perennials for the rest of my life.
My grandparents were the first perennials I knew. They were fun people, with unique gifts and talents.
Gran made the best biscuits and could sew anything. Granddaddy made the best sweet tea (which we have NEVER been able to replicate) and loved his garden and his animals.
I will remember many things about them for the rest of my life. But you know what I don’t remember about them? That they were old.
Their age simply never occurred to me. And it didn’t matter. We played and laughed and enjoyed one another.
Too often, we get caught up in categorizing people in ways that do not describe them at all.
We put people in boxes like “old” or “elderly” as if these somehow say anything about the individuals themselves.
I spend plenty of time with people in their 80s and 90s, and it does not take long to realize that these perennials are diverse, creative individuals, who, if we choose to see them, possess likes and dislikes, talents and weaknesses, just like everybody else.
We all want to be seen and valued for who we are. Perennials are no different.
Take some time to get to know them, and enjoy the friendship and talents they have to share. But maybe skip the sardine tasting.
Got a story about a perennial you had the joy of knowing well? Tell us about it in the comments below!
