Here’s a touching story sent to me in an e-mail recently:

“One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, “Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd.”

I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes

My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for his glasses,  I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, “Those guys are jerks. ” They really should get lives.

” He looked at me and said, “Hey thanks!” There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now.

Now I had never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid and I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends. He said yes. We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him.

Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again on his way back to school.  I stopped him and said, “Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday !” He just laughed and handed me half the books.

Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I was going to Duke, but I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem.

He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd.

Come Graduation, he had to prepare a speech. I was so glad it wasn’t me having to get up there and speak !

Graduation day came, and I saw Kyle – he looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He had filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous, and today was one of those days.

I could see that he was nervous about his speech, so I smacked him on the back and said, “Hey, big guy, you’ll be great!”  He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled.  “Thanks,” he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began:-

“Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach…but mostly your friends… I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them.

I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met.

Apparently, he had planned to kill himself over that weekend.

He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn’t have to do it later, and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.

“Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable.” I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment.

I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize its depth.

So, never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person’s life, for better or for worse.

We all impact in each other’s lives in some way.

Well, the good news is Madge and I did survive the week entertaining our five Grandkids and their three cousins. Highlight of the week was the pantomime “Babes in the wood” down at the local community centre, which we all attended with the exception of Lucas and Lucy, who had leading roles in the cast.

We ended a great week with a full family nosh-up at the local Turnpike pub restaurant where, sixteen in number with the inclusion of son John, wife Amanda and daughters Katie and Amy, we filled our own room.

One reason Madge and I survived the week intact was the break we took at the beginning of January at Nidd Hall in the Yorkshire Dales. Four days of being pampered allowed us to relax and unwind after the hectic Christmas celebrations. Pics below show the front of Nidd Hall, Madge relaxing doing a crossword in our comfortable hotel room, and one of the permanent residents in the grounds down at the lakeside.

This week Madge and I are in the middle of a full Grandparents’ session with a vengeance.

Stage one was drive down to the South Coast, spend a couple of days with son Paul and family, and bring up Jake, Lauren and Dan to spend the week with cousins Sam and Tom and half-cousins Luc, Jackson and Lucy, with cousins Katie and Amy bobbing in at the weekend.

Stage two was to invite all the cousins round for the week to have indoor and outdoor fun and games during the school holidays.

So Tuesday was the cue for Madge to make her monster Shepherd’s Pie for the ten of us. Lovely to see the kids’ excitement as they get to stay over at Sam and Tom’s and go round to Luc and Jackson’s or Lucy’s for the afternoon. I have good memories of staying over when I was a kid, sleeping out was always an exciting experience.

A bonus for the kids this year was that since Jake, Lauren and Dan did not get up here at Christmas because the heavy snow at the time made the journey hazardous, there has been a belated giving out of stored-up Christmas presents.

Stage three, if you haven’t already guessed, is to survive the week intact.

Pics below show some of the gang around the dinner table, and a view of the tree-den the lads built up this afternoon.  With a bit of luck, Madge and I might just survive the week !

It’s now more or less taken for granted that our Grandkids Sam and Tom will be staying over each Saturday through Sunday morning, along with cousins Luc and Jackson. I am pleased to see that they are taking the opportunity, whenever the weather is fine, to  play out  in our back garden, which is quite spacious at about a quarter of an acre, and use their imagination and ingenuity to provide their own entertainment.
During the last few weekends they have been out until nightfall playing outdoor games and constructing things. Their latest project has been a den built at the top of the garden behind the hedge. The pic below shows the start of the framework, made from tree trimmings driven into the ground and fastened together with twine:

Next weekend, Madge and I are away to the South coast to visit son Paul and family for a few days, after which we will bring grandkids Jake, Lauren and Dan to join their cousins up here in Yorkshire for the rest of the week. It will be interesting to see if the den survives the week !
Pics below, taken last summer,  show Sam and Luc up the garden with some complex game arrangement involving tree, ropes, tables, cardboard boxes, a goal net and lord knows what else, and Tom, Sam, Jackson and Luc in the local park deciding what to get up to next. This all takes me back to what we used to get up to as kids before and during the War, damming streams, making dens and playing out until dark.

You don’t get to see a lot of this as a parent, you’re too busy getting on with day to day family life, and kids involve us Grandparents in their activities much more, as we progress blissfully through our second childhood.  It’s so much more fun being Grandparents than just parents !

Getting excited this week as Madge and I will be going over to John and Amanda’s house to look after Katie, 3, and Amy, nine months whilst their mum and dad are taking a quick 5-day break in Malta.

Super-organized Amanda has e-mailed us with a full list of mealtimes, bedtimes, clothes and food locations and do’s and don’ts, so even with our shared brain cell we should be able to cope alright for the two nights we are in charge; Amanda’s parents, who live locally, are “in loco parentis” for the other three nights. One bonus of visiting John and Amanda’s is that there is an excellent local fish & chip shop, so that makes one tasty easy meal.

Pics below show Katie contemplating the cake at her recent birthday tea, Amy expressing herself, and a shot of the doll’s house we bought Katie for her birthday.

Went to a concert last week at nearby Castleford Civic Centre to see Grandson Sam, 11, play drums in the annual Wakefield Schools Music Centre Concert. There were performances by the Brass Band section and the Symphony Orchestra section and the massed Choir. Sam has a full professional drum kit at home and also practices weekly with members of the orchestra and brass band. (He does use muffles when practicing at home !)

Pics below show Sam ready to set off for the concert, and at his drum kit at the Civic Centre.  A good time was had by all !

Quick joke……

What did one fish say to another whilst in the pelican’s beak ??

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What’s a plaice like you doing in a bird like this ?

Enjoyed our October visit to the Red Sea Riviera again over the the last couple of weeks.