An Open Letter to My Babushka

BabyZone
Babushka and her grandson.
Babushka and her grandson.

Here, in no particular order, are a few things my grandmother--aka Babushka--opts to do when she visits my house: play with the baby, fold laundry, take stock of the food in my fridge and scold me for letting the potatoes go bad, wash dishes, answer the phone when market research firms call and hang up because she has no idea what they're saying, make the toddler's bed, water the plants and cook tasty mash from the few non-rotten potatoes..

There's more, but if I keep going this blog will never stop, and I'll never get to say this:

Dear Babushka,

Thank you.

Thank you for being almost 83 but acting 30 years younger.

Thank you for helping me however you can.

Thank you for the way your face lights up when you see your great-grandchildren.

Thank you for insisting they learn your native Russian even though I've grown lazy about teaching them.

Thank you for trying to stay healthy by walking everywhere, even the two miles between your home and mine.

Related: My Favorite Children's Books About Gratitude

Thank you for not letting the multiple stents in your heart slow you down.

Thank you for surviving a famine, a world war, religious persecution and a months-long immigration journey.

Thank you for reminding me to eat fruit.

Thank you for getting up at 5 AM to cook after a sleepless night worrying that your older great-grandson is too thin (even though he's really not.)

Thank you for bringing us multiple Tupperware containers full of delicious food.

Thank you for not being too annoyed when I forget to return the empty containers.

Thank you for laughing when a certain mischievous toddler purposely bumped into you on the playground slide.

Thank you for letting me take a few photos here and there even though you hate posing for pictures.

Thank you for having my children call you Babushka too because Prababushka (Russian for great-grandmother) is really a mouthful.

Thank you for your calm.

Thank you for your rare, but kind, smiles.

Thank you, dorogaya Babushka.

Love always,

Aleesachka

For the 8 lessons one blogger has learned from keeping a gratitude journal, visit BabyZone!

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