Reflection

My Mother was a hard worker who raised 7 kids.
She was a Mother who disciplined us and instilled in us a drive and reason to be better at everything we did. We never wanted to disappoint her - NEVER.
Her motto was "The easy way is not always the right way!" and she did not let us take the easy way out ever - God Bless you for that, Ma.

I finally get what she was about or maybe it's just the process of growing older and wiser.

There comes a point in your life that you stop being a mother and switch your gears to "Grandma". Of course you will always be there for your kids when they need you, but that seems to be less and less.

True, you always want to know what is going on in your children's lives, but the conversations seems to turn to the grandkids. My conversations with Ma over the last few years of her life always ended up about the grandkids and great grandkids. Kinda like - OK enough about you what are the kids up to.
She was the best Grandma and great-grandma.

She showed me that your job as Mother changes. You don't need to worry about whether they are eating right, seeing the doctor, getting enough sleep, not staying out too late, and saving for their future  (at least on a daily basis). They should already know that by now, or they have a significant other in their lives to help them through all that.

No,  it is time to sit back and watch them become Mothers and Fathers of their own. To watch them become responsible parents. To succeed in their jobs and make something wonderful of themselves and just be proud of that.

Your job now is to be Grandma.

It's to plan your schedule around watching the grandkids play baseball and football. To see them on the sidelines cheering. To get on the floor and play blocks and build that tower over and over again only to be knocked down. To buy them something just because you know that they would love it.

You bake them pancakes and cookies and just like my Mother always did make so much food that they never leave hungry.

You fill your camera with pictures of silly fun stuff of them that nobody else but you will care about, but you think it's the best ever.

You brag to everyone what your grandkids are doing and you are not one bit embarrassed about it.

Yeah Ma, I think I can get used to this Grandma thing.

So I am going to face being 60 and see myself in the mirror as not getting older, but being a Grandma who thinks her grandkids will someday rule the rest of the world like they do mine.