Did You Forget Grandma Was Upstairs?

Did You Forget Grandma Was Upstairs?

When the child dropped his wisdom into the middle of the conversation, everyone gasped. They had been discussing what to do with Grandma; she no longer could see good enough to take care of herself, her house wasn't as clean as she used to keep it, she took the wrong pills yesterday, and the list went on.

The grownups sat in the living room while Grandma was upstairs taking a nap in her well-used bed. She loved sleeping in the permanent hollow formed by Grandpa's strong body before he died. The stroke had come unexpectedly and took him away quickly.

Back downstairs, the children were on the floor looking at Grandma's album of faded black and white pictures. They marveled at the old cars people were so proudly standing in front of. They looked big enough to take the entire neighborhood to the mall. And how come they all were black? Was that the popular color back then? They giggled at the clothes. What were those long white things the ladies were wearing over their dresses? And how could anyone swim with all those clothes on.? There were pictures of babies. How come so many had dates of death written underneath?

The grownups in the living room, with Grandma upstairs and the kids on the floor, continued their discussion of the family problem. One uncle said she should go to an assisted living home. The two daughters said they guessed she could take turns living with them. Maybe someone should be hired to come live with her, but did she have enough money for that? As it can be with all family discussions, the subjects changed, but always came back to the topic of the day; the Grandma Problem.

The meal Grandma had fixed with her daughter's help brought memories of 'happier days gone by'. One of the children on the floor looked up from the picture albums to listen to the glorious stories being told. Stories of jumping from the hay loft in the barn, tire swings, swimming in the pond, and Christmases with the homemade gifts from Grandma and Grandpa.

No one noticed as the one child who had been listening to the grownups left the room and went upstairs, But they did notice when he dropped his wisdom into the middle of the conversation. He was standing on the stairs holding his great-grandmother's hand. He said,"You've been talking about Gram and the family. Did you forget she was upstairs? After she decides where she wants to live, maybe she could tell us more stories about the 'good old days."

Grandma just smiled.