There were many things that 8 year old Noah liked to do. He liked to shoot hoops with his friends during recess at school. He likes to play video games, although not as much as he would like - because his mom limited his screen time. He liked to eat, especially anything his dad grilled, like hamburgers with floppy cheese and ketchup, and hotdogs - just plain on a bun. He even liked Math - which was his favorite subject at school. But the one thing that surpassed all others, Noah liked the times he got to go all by himself to his grandparents’ house.
First of all, they lived in a huge house, that even had an attic, filled with all kinds of old stuff - which his grandparents let him explore. When he got to stay for a couple of days,
which were the times he really enjoyed, he got his own bedroom, one he did not have to share with his whinny 4-year-old brother. Grandma always seemed to be cooking something in the kitchen, and he loved the smells that would drift and fill the house, smells of chicken frying, and biscuits and gravy in the morning, and oh the smells of the cookies baked almost every afternoon!
Grandpa would take him fishing, and even if they did not catch a single fish, Noah just liked the time they would spend together, as grandpa always had good stories to tell.
They often ended up in the workshop in the garage where they did what grandpa called
projects, but what grandma just called puttering around. It seemed like Grandma always had a few chores for him, bringing the laundry in off the clothesline (grandma was a bit old-fashioned and never got used to a clothes dryer, and the clothes did smell a little fresher after blowing in the breeze).
Likewise with dishes, Noah’s family never washed dishes by hand, but grandma always
did as she said they were cleaner that way. Noah never minded the chores, because like
the time he spent with grandpa, it gave him time to visit with his grandma, she always had a few good stories, too, mostly about grandpa’s antics. Noah especially enjoyed the time they spent together in the evenings– after dinner, or after supper, as his grandparents called it, Noah thought this to be a bit old fashioned, too. They would go for walks around the block, all holding hands. And Noah was glad none of his friends lived in the neighborhood, as he thought he was a bit old to have to hold hands.
After the walks, they hardly ever turned on the television, because they were too busy
playing games, like UNO, or Battleship, or Old Maid, which always amused Noah because he thought the old maid looked just like his grandmother. During these times, he could always tell that he was the center of his grandparents’ attention, and most of all their affection. Noah knew, without a doubt, that his grandparents loved him.
After a few days, it was always time to go home, and the goodbyes were always hard, as
it would be weeks, sometimes even months, before he saw his grandparents again. . .
After a stay that Noah thought was a good one, he wondered how he could return all
the love his grandparents showed him. And as he lay in bed that night, even in spite of his
brother’s whining, he came up with a couple of ideas that he was bound and determined to carry through with. First of all, he would make sure that he called his grandparents every week. No need to worry about cell phone numbers, as his grandparents thought cell phones to be a bit complicated. Believe it or not, they still had a phone that hung on the wall, definitely old- fashioned thought Noah. And the phone was even green!
But whether those phone conversations were long or short, he would make sure he told
his grandparents in the end, that he loved them, as this is what they always told him when he left at the end of his stays, except these would be without the big old kisses his grandmother gave him, as Noah thought he was getting a bit to old for these, too.
And the second thing he would do, is make sure that every month, he would send his
grandparents a card in the mail as he thought that would be extra special - because even Noah liked to get unexpected mail. Noah quickly found out that even though his cards were home-made, his grandparents saved each and every one of them as they would always be hanging on the refrigerator, they next time he visited. And he also quickly found out that his grandparents liked his weekly phone calls, as they would get longer and longer, and the goodbyes at the end were almost as hard as those when he left their house. Noah knew his grandparents loved him –and now they knew that he loved them too, not that there was ever any doubt, but it is always good to tell the ones you love, that you do love them, as those are words that are never wasted.
The End
Noah, and his grandparents. . .