An Heirloom String of Pearls

I can hardly believe that in just a couple of months I’ll be a 47 year old divorcee’, mother of two and grandmother of three. I feel as though I should have some great pearls of wisdom to impart to the world. Then I think about all of the mistakes I’ve made, and I realize that I don’t necessarily deserve to be thought of as wise. I’m nothing like my grandparents, who were wise beyond their years. They knew so much about everything. Too bad I didn’t listen to them more when I had the chance. What I wouldn’t give if I could listen to them now.

My grandmother often talked about how quickly time passes. I always listened, but it wasn’t until the births of my children and grandchildren when I really understood and appreciated what she meant. She was so right.

For me, the best way to describe how quickly time passes is to think about a toy that most people my age played with when we were kids. It was called a top. The idea of how to play with the toy was that the harder you pushed down on to the top, the faster the top would spin. These days, it’s almost as if someone keeps pushing down on that top, as time spins faster and faster. Now I don’t really want to stop the top, but it would sure be nice if I could just slow it down a bit. I find myself wishing I could slow things down just enough so that I can treasure those things which give me joy… a sunrise, a sunset, my grandchildren’s laughter, and even my dog Max when he amusingly tries to speak.

I see many younger people making the same mistakes I made when I was their age. Often times I want to say to them, “Hey, you’re making a big mistake”, but I don’t, because learning from our mistakes helps us grow. Besides, they’d probably just think the same about me as I thought of my grandparents… old and without a clue.

I realize that I am beginning to sound more and more like my grandparents, which I never saw coming. Maybe Grandma was onto something. When she was my age, perhaps she felt the same as I do now. I wonder if someday my children and grandchildren might also have these same reflections.

Pearls of wisdom… I have a few, but pearls are rare and precious, and should be safeguarded until they’re used. So for now, while I’m still collecting my pearls for that perfect string, I’ll just stash them away. Maybe someday I’ll pass them down to someone who’ll appreciate them as much as I do.