A new era
My grandmother has, for years, long before I was born, had Friday night dinners for the family. When I was young, I was made to sit on a towel in case I dropped food on their chairs. When I was young, my aunt and uncle came every single week. We still have fights about politics. Except we don’t, not anymore. Suddenly, my grandmother can’t manage it. Suddenly, she’s on and off sick (a recurrence, we think, of Meniere’s disease), on and off unable to get out of bed for a day or more at a time. She can’t hear properly. And so, lately, no family dinners. Oh, my mother and my aunt intend to do them, sometimes, but I am not sure whether they will. Even if they do, it’s just not the same.
And I know, of course it’s not the same, it hasn’t been the same in ages, but this is a real ending to something I am not ready to see end, and I can no longer ignore that my grandparents are mortal and in their late 80s.
October 5th, 2007 at 9:02 am
{{{Wolfa}}}
I’m so sorry to hear your grandmother is unwell. This is a beautiful description of what family tradition feels like.
October 6th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
What a difficult thing to come to terms with. Your description of family dinners paints such a wonderful picture of those events. Peace to you as you navigate the changes.