A SILVER LINING DURING COVID
Summer 2020
Every night as I tucked my daughter into bed she would say, “Tell me a story Mommy.” I was not very good at making up stories, so I would tell her a story from my childhood, with bits of writer’s embellishment. I found out later that when she said to my husband, “Tell me a story Daddy,” he would tell her a story from a movie he loved – Karate Kid, Rocky, Top Gun, Mulan, Moana.
As COVID-19 has lingered and surged and most people, particularly the elderly, are stuck at home, I observe as my now adult children probe their grandparents for answers to what life was like when they were growing up. My children have had more time with their grandparents, albeit outside and six feet apart, in the last year than ever before in their lives. Since no one is particularly busy and conversations about politics and the virus have run their course, this is the perfect time to let the grandparents talk.
We learned that my father-in-law and a buddy once kidnapped the girl down the street and demanded ransom. My kids were appalled and said, “Papa, you would be arrested if you did that today.”
We also learned that my mother-in-law grew up on the Upper West Side of Manhattan but rarely ventured into Central Park, as it was considered too dangerous. She would never walk on the Park side of Central Park West.
“You would get mugged on that side of the street,” said my mother-in-law.
“But Grandma, the other side of the street was ok?” my daughter asked.
“Oh yes, the bums did not come on our side of the street,” she told her.
My parents and in-laws have been motivated to dig into old photos and show us the classics.
“Oh my God, Grandma, you look just like Aunt Karen,” my niece exclaimed.
“Poppy, what are you wearing? Are those shorts or pants? I’ve never heard of knickers,” my daughter said.
These conversations and photos are the gift that this difficult year has given our family. Each week they pull some new treasures out of old boxes. And they reach into the recesses of their memories to recall, in perfect detail, the winter they worked on a farm mucking stalls. We never knew they even stepped foot on a farm.
Now, in anticipation of our visits, my father-in-law jots down notes. My mother-in-law looks for photos. They anxiously await the moment one of us says, “Tell me a story.”
We have chosen to record these stories and photos and create a keepsake book we will cherish forever.
EVERYONE HAS A STORY – We help you preserve yours
As COVID-19 has lingered and surged and most people, particularly the elderly, are stuck at home, I observe as my now adult children probe their grandparents for answers to what life was like when they were growing up. My children have had more time with their grandparents, albeit outside and six feet apart, in the last year than ever before in their lives. Since no one is particularly busy and conversations about politics and the virus have run their course, this is the perfect time to let the grandparents talk.
We learned that my father-in-law and a buddy once kidnapped the girl down the street and demanded ransom. My kids were appalled and said, “Papa, you would be arrested if you did that today.”
We also learned that my mother-in-law grew up on the Upper West Side of Manhattan but rarely ventured into Central Park, as it was considered too dangerous. She would never walk on the Park side of Central Park West.
“You would get mugged on that side of the street,” said my mother-in-law.
“But Grandma, the other side of the street was ok?” my daughter asked.
“Oh yes, the bums did not come on our side of the street,” she told her.
My parents and in-laws have been motivated to dig into old photos and show us the classics.
“Oh my God, Grandma, you look just like Aunt Karen,” my niece exclaimed.
“Poppy, what are you wearing? Are those shorts or pants? I’ve never heard of knickers,” my daughter said.
These conversations and photos are the gift that this difficult year has given our family. Each week they pull some new treasures out of old boxes. And they reach into the recesses of their memories to recall, in perfect detail, the winter they worked on a farm mucking stalls. We never knew they even stepped foot on a farm.
Now, in anticipation of our visits, my father-in-law jots down notes. My mother-in-law looks for photos. They anxiously await the moment one of us says, “Tell me a story.”
We have chosen to record these stories and photos and create a keepsake book we will cherish forever.
EVERYONE HAS A STORY – We help you preserve yours