"Life is lived forward, but understood backward. It is not until we are down the road and we stand on the mountain looking back through the valley that we can appreciate the terrain God has allowed us to scale.” Jill Savage

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

A Dare...

"Perfect love sometimes does not come until the first grandchild." Welsh Proverb

My grandson hates to write. I mean hates it. And he is having to do a lot of writing in school. We went to his conference and he had written a paragraph and the teacher had it up in the hallway.


His writing and we told him, was not so great. My daughter and I were upset - not exactly because it wasn't so great, but because we knew he could do better. The problem we are experiencing this year - as he moves up in grades - is that the teacher has more students per classroom and more and more subjects to teach.


Therefore she doesn't 'know' my grandson like his other teachers have in the past. Went he tells her that he 'can't' do any better - for some stupid (sorry) reason she believes him. She even told him it was a good job!


My daughter and I got a little upset. If he was having that big of a problem with hand writing - she should have told us before February - don't you think? It's almost the end of the year.

We walk out of the conference and the teacher says, "Gee, do you think it's me?" Dah....


He can't spell either. The reason I am not too worried right now about spelling and writing and even reading was that my son the doctor was a late bloomer too. Don't worry though we are having his teacher from last year tutoring him every week and his skills are improving.


Now he saw me on my Blog the other day. He said, "Is it about me?" I said no. He said, "Grandma write a ten paragraph story about me."


I said, "That doesn't scare me! I love to write." So here I am - keeping my promise to him. I made a copy of it for him and he made me read it. I teared up - what a goof I am. I realize it is a love poem to him. I am goofy I admit it. That little guy has just changed me so much.


Since I said I wasn't afraid of ten paragraphs he said, "Well skip two lines and then write 3 more." So this Blog today is to show him I can do it - he can do it - and to not be afraid of hard work - that it's actually fun. And let me ask you - in these days and times with the computer and spell check - who is going to need writing and spelling - really ???


And guess who is writing so neat and so very cool now? He is. And the teacher - she is surprised. I hope she learned something. When a child says it is the best they can do - check it out! Get an answer before you just accept it. Ask the parents if it's true, ask the teacher from the last year, or make them at least try to re-do and not accept it.


Did you ever read "Leo The Late Bloomer" or the "Princess And The Pea"? Those two books talk about my beloved grandson. And if you ever find this silly blog someday my love - know that I loved and believed in you dearly.




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I just skipped my two lines and here are my last three paragraphs. You have taught me far more than I think I have taught you. Thank you my love.


You have taught me to see things out of young eyes again. You have taught me patience and perseverance. You have taught me to love again in a way I had lost.


And most of all you have helped me to see it is okay to be sensitive. You are born that way so God must have wanted us to be sensitive. That we are not too sensitive we are just more sensitive. Believe it or not you helped me to forgive myself.


I love you pal. This one is for you. Fly my little one, fly and don't let anyone ground you!


Grandma Chatty

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a cute little pilot!

I had my first plane ride recently and it wasn't near as bad as I thought!

I found you through Penniwigs blog...and I look forward to reading here!

^..^Corgidogmama said...

Chatty, you went and made me cry today, dagnabit!
Was that teacher, young and stupid, or just stupid?
If you don't expect much out of a child, you won't get much, right???
How did she not know that?
Grrrr.....
This was a loving, sweet, tender, and yes, sensitive tribute to your darling, once in a lifetime gift, grandson. Sweet, sweet, sweet.
Bet your eyes were leaking by the time you hit that last sentence, huh? You're a wonderful grandma!

Chatty Crone said...

I have to admit I cried when I read it out loud to my grandson to show him I did the challenge.

You know a few months ago I felt I had cried my tears out - I had kind of quit crying.

Well, I found some more. I don't think you can grow and get to the other side of where you need to go without them sometimes.

Unknown said...

You are a wonderful grandmother!!!

JeanMac said...

Wonderful, Grandma!

Chatty Crone said...

Thank you very much, I try, but he has changed me too.
I think all grandmothers are special angels for our little ones - don't you? And grandpa's too.

Unknown said...

This reminds me the way I learned to read from my grand father.
He would read the newspaper every morning religiously and I would sit by his side asking questions.
He started teaching me the letters and words.
I did not know that he was teaching me and I did not know I was learning.
I was just curious and he just fed that curiosity.
By the age of 6 I could read fluently :)

Chatty Crone said...

You see a lot of learning has to do with the child too. You were motivated to learn. That is a gift in itself.