Grandmothers - Crucial for Human Evolution

New Evidence That Grandmothers Were Crucial for Human Evolution | Surprising Science

Surprising Science supports the "grandmother hypothesis": Here's a study (click on the above hot link) that shows grandmothering was the initial step that made us who we are, gave us the leg up we needed as a species to survive longer, more prone to cooperate with each other. Grandmothers helped our overall offspring survival rate and set the stage for us to be dependent on each other socially and to develop other of our uniquely human traits. It's a fascinating article that made me grateful. Have you thanked a grandmother lately? If you are one, give yourself a treat and read this article.

Fashion

"Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening. "Coco Chanel


I thought I would teach 
fashion to my granddaughter, age 5.
We went shopping at her request. 'Look
grandmother, I like those colors
together, and they're sparkly.'  

'You like sparkly?' I asked. 
'Sparkly is fun because
it makes me feel happy. 
And, when colors are all together, 
they look like flowers.'

I decided I'm the one to learn and she's my fashion teacher. 


This is posted in response to Ella's prompt over at Imaginary Garden with Real Toads regarding Coco Chanel's quote above on fashion. It reminded me of an incident that happened last year with my granddaughter. And for Open Link Night at dVerse Poets Pub hosted by Natasha Head who generously admonishes us to encourage one another's poetry.
(the photo is the desk where my granddaughter, now six, designs her fashion creations)

What Role We Have

What role we grands should take fills mind and heart
these days, 'sides love them well, the roots of roots n' wings,
love fierce, connect to all who ancest'red them, bring
complete the circle with them the purpose, the art,
entire, achieved, concluded, free drawn, writ large,
us left breathless at the specter except to sing
our songs for them and attend to theirs gathering
pieces to swell the family trove with their charms.
It's not about them at all, of course, but us,
death's incursion that lies beneath all else
and stands in contrast to their upward slant,
throws us back to what we do with such
lives as we've been given in gen'rous grace, not false
striving to garner praise but pouring hearts 'till spent.



This poem actually was inspired by the dVerse Poets post of September 13 about sonnets. It was a generous and meaty article by Gay Reiser Cannon with lots of information about various kinds and structure of sonnets and splendid examples. I've been working on this since and finished it yesterday. I'm amazed that others wrote theirs so quickly. I post it tonight for Open Link Night at dVerse Poets Pub hosted by Claudia, an inspirational poet in her own right.
(photo taken on my recent trip to Ireland)

A Grandmother in Rome

While visiting the Pantheon I came across this statue of St. Anne with her young daughter, Mary, who later gave birth to Jesus. The statue with all the pomp and circumstance of this church (as it is now) and the myriad religious doctrines surrounding Anne and Mary,  portrays an ordinary and affectionate scene. I found it compelling and it struck me not from a religious point of view but from a grandmother's point of view.  Anne became the grandmother of Jesus. I'd never thought of her that way before.

It got me thinking that behind even the holiest or most famous person is a grandmother or two. A grandmother who wants what is best for her grandchild, who cooks for and cuddles that grandchild, plays with, reads to, teaches, laughs with and encourages that grandchild, thinks that her grandchild has rare abilities and gifts and can become a great and important person. Hopes, at least, for her grandchild's full unfolding as a person. We know how her grandson turned out, his pivotal role in history, his enormous influence through the ages. We can only speculate about her role in the early life of Jesus since she isn't mentioned in the gospels and was already older when she had Mary. She was at the very least the model of mothering for Mary.

I spent more time with this obscure statue than any of the better known others since it seemed so personal and spoke to me of my unique and important role in the lives of my grandchildren. Like Anne in the statue, I'm unaware of my grandchildren's future.  They will walk their own paths in response to their own callings. But I love their mother and father, love them and stay involved in their lives telling them stories of their ancestors, cheering them on and believing in their possibilities. Just like St. Anne.

Who's inspiring you these days?