WHEN KIDS ARE WITH grandparents, they relax more. They curl up, they talk more, they laugh differently. And they seem calmer, less rushed, more themselves.
Grandparents are often slower-paced, softer, and less pressure-filled than the parent-child relationship. Parents are juggling work, household chores, discipline, finances, decisions – all of which can be emotionally exhausting. But grandparents are often able to offer something else: more listening, more patience, more storytelling … more time, more presence, more delight. And children feel that.
Kids regulate through relationships. Their nervous systems are constantly asking: Am I safe here? Am I accepted here? Can I relax?
For many children, grandparents are one of those safe places. Not because grandparents are perfect. And not because parents are failing. But because children benefit from having multiple emotionally-safe adults who love them, and love them deeply.
In a world that’s increasingly fast, distracted and stressful, grandparents can give children something rare: the feeling that there is time for them. And, honestly, that feeling stays with children for the rest of their lives.
AMY TODEY PhD – CHILD PSYCHOLOGIST
YESSIR!
I don’t want any yes-men around me.
I want every man to
tell the truth,
even though it costs him
his job!
AHH, YES!
How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then to rest afterwards.
SPANISH PROVERB
UNLOCKED
Forgiveness is
unlocking the door
to set someone free –
and
realising
YOU were the prisoner!
MAX LUCADO
A WEEKDAY BLESSING …
May your hair, your teeth, your face-lift, your abs, and your share-values not fall – and may your blood
pressure, your triglycerides, your cholesterol, your white blood count and your mortgage-interest not rise.
May you get a clean bill of health from your dentist, your cardiologist, your gastroenterologist, your urologist, your proctologist, your podiatrist, your psychiatrist, your plumber, and the IRD.
May you find a way to travel from anywhere to anywhere during rush hour in less than an hour – and when you get there may you find a parking space.
May what you see in the mirror delight you – and what others see in YOU delight them.
May you remember to say ‘I love you’ at least once a day to your spouse, your child, and your parents. You can say it to your secretary, your nurse, your butcher, your photographer, your masseuse, your hairdresser, or your gym instructor – but not with a ‘twinkle’ in your eye.
May you live as intended, in a world at peace, aware of the beauty in every sunset, every flower’s unfolding petals, every baby’s smile, and every wonderful, astonishing, miraculous beat of your heart.
(AUTHOR UNKNOWN)
GO FIGURE …
Marriage
is
when
you
know
your
wife
adores
you,
but
also
finds
you
the
single
most
annoying
person
on
the
planet –
all within the same minute!
BAD-HAIR DAY
Next time you’re tempted to complain about getting old, remember:
some
people
are
denied
the
opportunity!
LAUGHTER & JOY
You are loved with a love that nothing can shake, a love that loved you long before you were created, a love that will be there long after everything has disappeared. You are precious, with a preciousness that is totally quite immeasurable. And God wants you to be like God. Filled with life and goodness and laughter–and joy.
ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU – ‘THE BOOK OF JOY’
WALKING TOGETHER
God never created us to be alone. He designed us for community. It’s in walking together that we find encouragement when we’re weary, truth when we’re doubting, and joy when we’re celebrating.
Community is where his love is reflected in real ways, reminding us that life is lighter when carried together and stronger when we lift each other up.
MICHELLE PATINO
FILED AWAY
Your brain is like a filing cabinet with a positive drawer and a negative one. You choose how you do your filing. If you put something in the negative one, it will be stuck in your head …
ELSIE WALKINSHAW – CHRISTCHURCH EARTHQUAKE SURVIVOR
A WOMAN JUST LIKE ME …
I have never understood why some people are lucky enough to be born with the chance that I had, to have this path in life, and why across the world there’s a woman just like me, with the same abilities and the same desires, the same work ethic and love for her family, who would most likely make better films and better speeches, only she sits in a refugee camp and she has no voice. She worries about what her children will eat, how to keep them safe, and if they’ll ever be allowed to return home. I don’t know why this is my life and that’s hers. I don’t understand that. But I will do as my mother asked, and I will do the best I can with this life to be of use …
ANGELINA JOLIE – ACADEMY AWARDS ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
PATIENCE?
The good things
that come
to those who wait
are probably
the things
those who got there first
didn’t want.
EVENTUALLY GRATEFUL
Grace is the light or electricity or juice or breeze that takes you from that isolated place and puts you with others who are as startled and embarrassed and eventually grateful as you are to be there.
ANNE LAMOTT – ‘TRAVELLING MERCIES’
