My wife and I blessed with seven grand children, all ages and stages of development. Some already working, others only just beginning to crawl. The joys of being the older parents wonderful, potty training, the plans for schooling, the further education and lastly work seeking, not our problem. Yes we stress for them but realise we can only now play supporting roles.

What has been our greatest pleasures of having grand children? Not being required to change nappies, clean up vomit, chase after crawlers that can summarily disappear, but the greatest pleasure is to watch them develop in character. To be able to interact with them, as a baby when small, to the discussions of daily life with the mature older ones. Have we been an influence on their lives? We hope so, our attitude towards discipline yet the latitude we allow for the friendship to develop. We want that they may feel like us with my Grand parents, available to discuss any thing, any time. The trust to impart the problems experienced, that they feel too difficult to discuss with the own parents, we all had them.

The pleasures of observing the love and discipline imposed by your own issue upon their own, delightful. The memories that result from the interaction between Mother and Daughter, reducing the ages that have past. The delight of realisation, that the now happening interactions, have gone before. Similarities between the past, of times when thoughts of ever raising the very woman now raising her young daughter, unbelievable. The personality clash of two so similar, humorous, the memories of days past spring back into the mind, as if they only happened yesterday.

The son and his developing sense of humour, his wish to do everything at once, tremendous. His cycling escapades, accompanied by his father, a love of his life. His determination to win and do it all, not encouraged by his parents, but the sensible advocating to enjoy as much as win, imparted. These kids of ours, sensible, serious and knowledgeable beyond their years. Highly technically advanced, (they are computer programmers, owning their own business) encourage their children to work the computers, cell phones and other strange pads around the house. To have a near six-year-old explaining to his grand parents how an iPad works, magnificent. Do they spend all day playing with the modern technical implements? No, their parents do not allow this, they play outside, bare footed, with all the toys of our youth, reminiscent of our attitude towards youthful education.

To see the son, that no length’s of imagination could picture with his own daughter, now blessed with her, heart tugging. The love, protection, and adoration that the monster of a man can extol, beyond belief. The baby, now crawling, so reminiscent of him, pounding across the carpet with determination of reaching what the eye can see and the mind will touch. The total demeanour of the child epitomising the joy and happiness of the parents, she hardly cries. The heart-strings tweaked when your son holds a small creation of wonder and feeds the child a bottle. We can relax. God placed this child perfectly, her future, she will carry the parents wishes forward.

Our oldest daughter, who has persevered through the hardships of life, raising four boys. All the apple of their Grand Mothers eyes, some still in school others working, carrying our admiration with them. To see the “tykes” of years past, now grown up and working, a testament to their correct upbringing.

We enjoy seeing the “hair pulling” actions of the grand children, whilst testing the fortitude of their parents, now we can smile and say “See what it feels like? You did it to us.”

We love them one and all, good or bad, they could never do anything wrong in our eyes. Or am I wrong fellow Grand Parents?