Books as the Language of Grandma’s Love

During this stay-at-home era of the pandemic, one of the most painful losses has been not seeing our beloved grandson E., almost two and a half years old, except on Facetime and in pictures and videos sent by our daughter. They live just a few miles away, and we used to see him (in “the olden days” of about two months ago…it seems much longer…) about two times a week. But because of the state and local orders, and because my husband and I are “seniors” and have health conditions that make us vulnerable, we have not had in-person visits. I particularly miss reading to him. One thing that has been helpful to me during this time is sending him cards, kids’ musical instruments, and – especially – books! I do research about kids’ books, combined with memories of what I read to my daughter when she was small, then order the books online from one of my favorite independent bookstores and have them delivered to E.’s house. My daughter is great about telling me which ones they have read to him so far, and which ones he especially likes. She recently texted me that he said, when books arrived for him, “new books from Grandma!” You can imagine how this adoring grandmother’s heart fluttered on hearing these words! This experience reminds me of how giving and receiving books can be a form of sharing, an expression of love, and a bond among family members and friends. P.S. For the first time in the ten years I have been writing this blog, I had the urge to append a heart emoji to a post…not my usual style (except very occasionally in a text or on Facebook), but the topic is so close to my heart! OK, I resisted that urge. But I came “this close”!