Switching Places
Four of our grandchildren and their mama and daddy were at our house on the 4th of July. To my surprise, our youngest grandson became fascinated with my collection of chickens, which I keep in the laundry room. When I went in, his mama had lifted him onto the washing machine where he could see them up close.
I don’t collect chickens anymore, but I like my completed collection. It is a real hodgepodge, and I like it just the way it is. Here are some of them.
I associate chickens with my Mama Sue and my Granny. Granny raised chickens, and Mama Sue collected chicken figurines. A few of my most cherished ones once belonged to Mama Sue, and I have one beautiful hen and chickens vase that was my mother’s.
It was so fun to see our little grandson enjoying them. It is the first time I ever remember any of them noticing them. Before long the other three of those grandchildren were on top of the washer and dryer, and we were pulling all the chickens down for a closer look.
Since then, I’ve given all the chickens a washing. Whew! Were they dusty!
I have long had a print of a grandmother and her little granddaughter in a chicken yard. I bought it many years ago because it made me think of Granny and me. The grandmother’s blue dress, the setting, and the little blond-haired girl make me think of the two of us. The print hangs between my two shelves of chickens.
As we enjoyed the chickens and talked about them, our nine-year-old granddaughter said of that picture, “That could be you and ____ or ____.” She named two of our other granddaughters (I try not to mention their names in my blog post for safety’s sake).
I was so surprised and taken aback by the switch in roles and then I was very amused. For all these years, I have seen myself as the little blond girl sticking close to her grandmother in the chicken yard. Now our granddaughter was seeing me as the grandmother!
Now I have two joys when I look at that print. I am both of the figures in the chicken yard now. I am still the little girl with Granny, and now I am also Little with one of our granddaughters. It’s a very nice place to be.
Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
The earth has yielded its produce;
God, our God, blesses us.
God blesses us,
That all the ends of the earth may fear Him.
Psalm 67:5-7