Carpe Diem

“Nothing is more expensive than a missed opportunity.”
H. Jackson Brown Jr.

Grandparents are offered a unique opportunity and granted a unique position to do only what a Grandparent can do. We have paid our considerable dues to belong to this special club. The amenities are fabulous and abundant; we all need to accept our role as “The family affirmer.”

When I wrote the book “Good to Great Grandparenting,” I said, “You have been given a gift. Actually, you are a gift. You are a Grandparent”. Now that the ball is in your court, you can decide where on the spectrum of [Ho-Hum to Greatest Grandparent EVER].

The reality is that most fall on the right side of the 1-10 scale somewhere in the 7-8 range, which pretty well qualifies for the "Great" status.

Some will just let things happen, yielding just that kind of result. And those who will hock their pocket watch to invest even their last ounce of resources into being the most intentional and fabulous grandparents on the planet. The choice is yours.

Some grandparents need to be made aware that in the 21st century, it is very prudent to treat grandparents in a 21st-century way. Let me explain. If you want to maximize your Grandparenting experience, you will enter through the gate of the Grandchildren’s parents. What sometimes gets overlooked is that we are trying to grandparents their kids rather than ours. Please take a moment and read that line again.

I have written two books on the fallout of Grandparents who are the victims of parents who feel unheard or unseen in this family hierarchy. It is beyond the scope of this article to get into the weeds on this, but the reality is the parents are the keepers of the gate if we wish to enter. I didn’t say you must like or understand it, but it is unwise to ignore it.

In future articles, I will offer many success stories and ideas of how other Grandparents have navigated this evolution from parenting their children to supporting them in their effort to raise them.

If you are on this site, I am confident you are the right person to take up this challenge.

Welcome to Good to Great Grandparenting. Grandpa NEIL