generations Archives - CONSIDER THIS with Annette Petrick

Backstory

There is concern these days about the world into which we are bringing children. What kind of future will they have in this great land of America? Is it as promising as once it was?

When we suddenly had three little boys enter the family all at the same time, it got me to thinking about things like that.

Three Baby Boys

They were born just months apart; three grand-babies for my lucky sister. It was such a surprise when her married children announced they were all pregnant, one after the other. She could not wait to have all three babies in one place at one time.

This summer it happened. The whole family gathered – from Chicago, New Jersey, Virginia – and celebrated the first birthdays of all three babies.

It was amazing how different they all were. One was already walking – toddling around the picnic grounds as independently as you please. One had a look of fine concentration; like he was taking everything in and had profound unspoken knowledge. The third was complacent and charming, smiling all the while and cuddling with anyone who offered their hands to hold him.

I was thinking my future and yours lie in the hands of these three baby men and thousands like them who are just coming into our world, our society, and our environment. What values will they have as they grow up? What morals will they uphold? What will the world expect of them?

The only thing I could predict for sure is that they will all be different from the way I was brought up. Very different. Better? Worse? History has yet to tell.

But as I kissed their sweet cheeks and felt the warmth of their smiles, I felt that my future was in good hands.

P.S. These babies will learn a new kind of balance between work and life. They will be judged by vastly different rules and norms. Their language will be full of words their parents never knew. They will be baffled by the things we believed and accepted. Parents and grandparents will be left in the dust of modern comprehension – just as we left the last two generations behind us.

[Show #303]

Backstory

This episode is not original. It was related by a storyteller; those folks who face their audience with nary a teleprompter in sight and narrate their tales. Wish I knew the name of the storyteller, to share with you.

The Wooden Bowl

The frail old man could no longer live alone. He moved in with his son and his family. But things got off to a rocky start.

The old man’s hands trembled and his eyesight was blurred. When the family ate dinner together, food fell off his silverware. He spilled his milk. He dropped plates.

The son’s wife was irritated with the mess. Finally, they decided to set a small table in the corner where Grandpa could sit alone. This would keep everyone else from being annoyed by him as they ate. To avoid broken dishes, food was served at the little table in a wooden bowl.

His 8-year-old grandson thought he saw tears in the old man’s eyes at mealtime, but he made no objection. One evening the parents noticed their son busily at work with some pieces of wood.

“What are you making?” the father asked. The boy responded, “I’m making bowls for you and Mama to have your food in when you live with me when I grow up.”

The parents were speechless as tears welled up in their eyes. That evening the man’s son went over to his father’s place at the little table and took his hand. He gently led him back to the family table.

For the remainder of his days, the old man ate every meal with his son’s family. And for some reason, it didn’t seem to matter anymore when a fork was dropped, a drink spilled, or a tablecloth soiled.

P.S. I found that this story has been attributed to Tolstoy and also the Brothers Grimm. A compendium of tales from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries lists this tale as being in circulation since 1535. It’s a pleasure to feature it here, yet again.

[Show #365]