Becoming a grandmother is both exciting and challenging. In Celebrating Grandmothers, twenty-seven women describe – in their own words – how they responded to the many new pleasures and demands of being a grandmother. You will read about how their new role changed the texture of their lives, their family relationships and their sense of themselves.
Whether you find that being a grandmother is a source of great joy – or of some pain due to sheer distance or family problems – it will speak to you. And you will gain many good ideas about how to do the best for both your adult children and your grandchildren.
An original present for new and experienced grandmothers alike.
Genre: FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Parenting / GrandparentingI have sold over 500 copies of this book to date. I find it sells best as a present to be given to a grandmother – whether by their own children or their mothers (great grandmothers) or other family members.
Grandmothers clearly enjoy discussing the many things they do with their grandchildren. But the significance of being a grandmother does not arise solely from what they do, but equally from what they feel. This chapter explores the comments of grandmothers about the emotional side of their relationship with their grandchildren, from the inevitable love and pride to a lot of worrying.
Love and its expression
The principal emotion of any grandparent is a sense of love, often to a surprising degree. Grandmothers seek different ways to explain what this means:
"It really is like falling in love. You’ve got this all-encompassing, must-protect-at-all-costs feeling – a glow. It’s wonderful. You’ve got to do everything you possibly can to make sure that nothing ever, ever happens to this person. It’s almost as if you’ve got a double duty, because you don’t want your child to be hurt or this child as well – you’ve got to work twice as hard." grandmother of one
"When the first granddaughter was born in Australia, we went to see her and spent six months. I cried almost all the way home – it kept coming over me, that I was leaving this little child and I wouldn’t see her again for a long while. I get more phlegmatic now, because I know that I’ll be back, but it’s still a sad thing to leave a wee one that you’ve got to know." grandmother of ten
"All grandchildren need is love. Not because they will do this or that for you, but because it's the right thing – it's something from you that's extended. You love your grandchildren as you love your own child." grandmother of three
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Portuguese
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Already translated.
Translated by Elvira Sousa
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Author review: Elvira did the best translation of my book ever, as far as I can tell (as I don't speak or read Portuguese). My Portuguese-speaking friend said she not only captured the words in my book, but she also captured the spirit. I know from working with her that she is thoughtful and careful. She is also surprisingly quick. The clearest indication of my view is that I have asked her to translate other books for me. |
