MODERN FAMILY
PICNICS in the garden munching on the nicest sandwiches ever tasted, eating the peas from the pod quicker than my grandad could pick them from the garden, making wondrous creations out of shells we had found on a fun-filled day out on the beach.
Being bathed in the glow of unconditional love and support is how I remember the magical time spent with my grandparents.
My gran might have had a wooden spoon lurking in the top drawer of the dresser in the kitchen but she never had to use it as we knew the boundaries and didn’t dare step over the line.
You knew that the rules could be bent that little bit when Mum and Dad weren’t around, but there was still the utmost respect.
My own mum has a sign that hangs in pride of place in her kitchen that reads: “Granny’s House Rules: Kitchen stays open 24 hours; expect to be spoiled; dessert comes first; no parents allowed; bedtime negotiable; endless hugs and kisses; what happens here stays here.”
Basically, what happens at Grandma’s stays at Grandma’s, and that is how it should be.
There might have been the odd overindulgence in hot steamy homemade pancakes straight from the grill, or an ice-cream soda a bit too close to bedtime, but is that really bad for us?
A team of university researchers believe so and have even said in a new report that grandparents are bad for your health.
Their conclusion is that they spoil their grandchildren with sweet treats and massive helpings of fattening food.
And it doesn’t stop there – they accuse them of allowing children to laze about inside, playing video games or watching television, instead of running around outside.
The extraordinary claims are based on a review of research into the influence grandparents have on lifestyle factors that can sow the seeds of cancer in later life.
But they are missing the bigger picture, and the positive and beneficial importance of grandparents if children are lucky enough to have them in their lives.
It is a relationship that is second in importance only to the one children have with their parents, and children can really benefit from their input.
That goldmine store of knowledge that comes with age and experience, for a starter. Not all grandparents may possess bookish knowledge but they have a wealth of real-life experiences and information to share which are not taught in any of the school lessons.
Grandparents serve as a great link between the past, present and the future.
They introduce our chidren to traditions, get involved with them in the present, and help them shape their future. What’s unhealthy about that?