SPRING BREAK Journal: Sunday, March 19, 2006

Yesterday I spent many pleasant hours in the company of my grandson, Noah, and my grandson-to-be, Joshua. I first of all stopped in for breakfast with Noah, Jaimie, and Jess in their woodland home in Brooklyn, CT. We sat near the comforting woodstove at the breakfast table and enjoyed Jaimie’s special French toast, all the while catching up on the family news. Noah sat peaceably beside me, listening carefully and occasionally offering some of his own wise words. Later, he and I played together in various ways – building towers with wood blocks, pretending to be dogs, cats, and fishers (an animal he saw in his driveway a few days ago), and reading old nursery rhymes on the couch. (When I read the one about the man who hit his head on his bed, Noah kept asking, “How did he hit his head?”) I guess most grandfathers feel this way, but I get more enjoyment hanging out with Noah than I do being with most adults. We’re “pals”, I guess – a couple of buddies growing up together. Around ten, I drove up the highway to Luke and Krissy’s, where I had a great time, both helping Luke work on re-doing a bedroom and just visiting with the parents-to-be. Krissy is big and healthy-looking these days, and seems overjoyed to be preparing to give birth to Josh. I felt like I was in the presence of three friends, not just two. Josh was still inside his mother, but he was unquestionably there with us, and probably taking pleasure in our company in the little snug house on Howe Lane.