Who is Grandma?    By: Linda Law

It was Sunday, a little before lunch

When the neighbor had visitors by the bunch

Hello Grandma, Hi Grandmother, Hi Mom,

You sure look good, How are you, Look, We’ve all come

Oh Joey, Mary, little Sissy too….you look so nice

I wasn’t expecting you; I’ve already gone once, but I’ll go twice

What a wonderful surprise….I’ve surely missed all of you

Oh Ma, we all are so busy, we didn’t mean to make you so blue

As I sat on my patio deck, I watched with envy I’m sorry to admit

The kids were dressed in Sunday best, hugging and doing their bit

Watching I noticed two held back, hung by the car, bored and wishing

It was time to go…a video game, some friends due soon…things they were missing

Tears formed, although I didn’t quite know why….wiped them dry.. let it go

He came out, “what’s wrong with you?  Why are you sad?”….It’s nothing Joe..

My mind was running back through time, remembering how much I missed mine

For all my life, what I had was theirs, nothing was too much, I lost my prime

The Sunday dinners, the weekly shopping trips, the hugs and laughter

Where did they go, I was certain they would last forever after

Now I’m not even a memory, they don’t know my name, or if I’m fine

It seems I’m forgotten, and no longer in their minds….or worth the time

Who would have guessed that if I loved with all my heart…gave so completely

That the good times, the sharing, the hugs would disappear like a mystery

The tears I held, and I almost sobbed…yet I kept control…I would not cry

I may be forgotten, but I am still alive, and I realize that I can’t even try

People and loved ones are always in a hurry, life is rushing, always in a flurry

Kids grow up, raising their own…then the grandkids grow, no time to tarry

What place we once held is no longer reserved…our usefulness has passed

Unless it’s a holiday or forced upon them, they may think of us, will this be her last?

All I could think of as I sat on the patio, watching and eavesdropping….

Wishing time could go back,  even one day; where they’d be stopping

The struggles, the heartbreak, the sacrifices we made, the price would be paid

For our family and theirs.. We’d smile thinking, this would last for always

One by one the cars stopped at Grandma’s, the kids piled out, then back and away

The laughter drifted out to the street, as the smell of their dinner seemed to stay

I walked inside, and fixed some lunch, we sat and ate, but nothing passed the lump

That stayed in my throat as I tried to keep my heart from falling to the floor like a decayed stump…