Rachel Dawson won our grand prize in the Legacy Project contest for younger people, who offered a lesson they’ve learned from an
elder in our lives. She tells about grandparents with a great sense of humor!
Immediately after graduate school, I had the opportunity to live with my grandparents for a year while I completed an exciting but low-paying internship. Although they lived very simply, they were incredibly happy people — both were in their mid-80s and had been married for 61 years at the time.
In late 2006 and early 2007, one of the biggest cable news network headlines was the paternity of Anna Nicole Smith’s daughter. One morning, I overheard my grandfather shouting to my grandmother “Grandma! GRANDMA! I have something to tell you!” She asked, “What is it, Bob?” He replied, “I’m really sorry…I’m the father of Anna Nicole’s baby!”
At that moment, it was apparent to me that their individual and shared sense of humor had played a significant role in the longevity of their marriage and their six decades of happiness. Rarely had they taken themselves or life too seriously.
I learned a lot that year during my internship, but the most valuable lesson came from them: cultivating the ability to laugh at ourselves and poke good-natured fun at each other is key to weathering the rough times and building a strong, happy life and relationship.
I listened to the interview with Karl last week (Jan 13) on our wonderful CBC radio.
I am preparing a talk for our local Elder College that I am calling Your Brain: Parts and Plans. That latter is something that folks will prepare during the talk and then take away to stick on their ‘frig. The plan of course is the myriad of things we can do to maintain a healthy, aging brain. I will be referring to this marvellous web site!
By the way, my wife and I celebrated our 50th in September. Humour is a big one for us too. Our 50th picture is of the 2 of us sitting in (a tide pool!) brightly coloured adirondak chairs toasting each other and looking at the BC coastal mountains.