I recently read a study by the University of Southern California that concluded that children who have an affectionate relationship with at least one of their grandparents scored higher on self-esteem tests than those who didn't. In fact, the positive affects of good grandparental relationships can even counterbalance the negative affects of divorce on a child's self-esteem.
In other words -- it's an important job.
I know the time spent with my grandparents made a difference for me. They provided a stable environment when my parents divorced. We lived with them and then next door in a house my mother had built in their orchard. Apples and apricots in the front; nectarines and peaches, two kinds, in the back. A horse out back in the barn. Play house. Someone always there to keep an eye on me and read to me or have me do embroidery quietly in the living room so she could take a nap on the other side of the house.
ReplyDeleteGrandma told my mother that sometimes she let me win at Canasta 'cause I was such a good loser. And I knew my presence lit up my grandpa's world.
Haven't thought about that in a while. Thanks, Tammie.