You arrive happy flashing that winning smile
Talking about getting the best medicine
After playing this morning with all three grandkids
Having fun and teaching through games.
It’s a world of wonder a gift to adults
When you are three, four and five
Learning and exploring everything
Beginning with no thought of ending.
You call the old Vietnamese restaurant
Saying, “This is grandpa and I want my usual.”
A familiar ritual ordering take out lunch
Where you first went in your youth.
We take you to walk around Laurelwood garden
A place nearby you have never been before
Glad to hear how it pleases you
“This place is delightful!
So peaceful.”
We sit briefly on an overlook
I see your eyes close with a dreamy smile
This is the beginning of the first hiatus
Pausing your treatment until more is needed.
The progression that ends eventually
Has an uncertain timetable some years from now.
We talk about the near term future
Making plans to spend more time together.
You show me what you have in your car
Supplied with toys and games and a skateboard
In the front seat well, the back seat and the trunk
Rolling along grandpa brings happy times.
You take out a sticker puzzle book to show me
Find the hidden pictures in the big picture
Holding it open so we can do it together
Two old men having fun being kids again.
