Who’s Teaching Who?

When I found out my daughter was pregnant I began to imagine what it would be like to be a grandma.  I fantasized about the kind of grandma I would be.

I conjured up elaborate scenarios of teaching my grandchild about life, about the importance of paying attention and being full present in each moment.   I imagined myself teaching him to stop and take notice, to appreciate everything, to live a meaningful, spiritual life.

In April my grandson turned two and it is quite clear now who is teaching who.

I learn important lessons from him every day.  Here is a list of some of the things I’m learning:

• Be 100% yourself
• Stay curious
• Explore
• Be totally fascinated by how things work
• Be fully engrossed with what your doing even if it’s for just 2 minutes
• Be diligent in your work
• Trust
• Love
• Cuddle
• Have a sense of humor
• Don’t hesitate to ask for what you need
• Don’t give in easily, fight for what you want but allow yourself to be persuaded by reasonable discourse

I think it’s fair to say that I’ve also taught him a thing or two.  After all, I have the advantage of a lot more years of embodiment so I do know a thing or two about walking, running, climbing, opening things and generally how things work.   But, these mundane lessons, while necessary, pale quickly in the shining light of his innate aliveness.

I watch my grandson as he goes about his day always active, industrious gleeful and curious.  He can go from being completely joyful one minute to woefully despondent the next when things don’t go his way.  But just as quickly as the emotional storms brew they blow over and he is back to his happy little self all over again, as if nothing every happened. No lasting damage, no “story” created to rehash later.  Whatever happens, happens and he effortlessly moves on.

I watch him daily in total wonderment, eternally grateful for the opportunity to be a part of his life, to learn from him.  My pint-sized guru.