As some of you know, we’ve been crashing at my parents house the last few weeks while we remodel our new home and get it ready for move in. So not only have they taken us in but they have taken in Millie (doodle) and Milo (cat) as well. To say we are grateful would be an understatement.

And if you know my parents you also know that their house stays spotless. They are meticulous about their stuff. Including my mom knowing exactly how many forks she has…but that’s a story for another day ??

So here we come with our animals in tow and some plants too. Zoey has my dads green thumb and love of plants, so they were part of the deal as well. But at a week in, Milo decided at 11 pm he was gonna knock off a plant from the top shelf of a bookcase. This plant happened to be bottom watered (for those like me that kill everything you touch….apparently some plants need to be watered from the base and not the top….who knew?!). So since there was water sitting in the saucer it meant the soil was plenty wet and it went flying. Soil was on the walls, dresser, bookshelf, chair, and their PALE cream carpet. Zoey was devastated. She was sobbing. Through those sobs came, “Nana is gonna kill me….” I just stayed silent because I felt the same way. Then she said, “BooBoo is gonna be so mad, the carpet is ruined…like really ruined.” I told her to calm down (while I was full fledge panicking inside) and that I would try to clean it. But 2 hours and 7 chemicals later it was only dulled but still blatantly there. I looked over at Zoey and said, “well I’ll start looking up the cost of replacing there carpets…” and through her sobs she said, “And I’ll start looking for a place for us to stay…” I laughed and said they were gonna be mad but I don’t think they were gonna kick us to the curb. But she was not convinced. I told her I would set an alarm and tell nana for her in the morning. But to be honest I was dreading it. I felt like I was a kid again and about to be in big trouble.

The next morning came and I walked into the kitchen and told my mom what had happened. I explained everything and she looked at me and said, “so that’s why this plant is on my kitchen counter?” I said, “yes, we didn’t want to chance him knocking it over again.” She said, “so it’s not going to stay here is it?” I said, “I don’t think you are hearing me….your carpet is DESTROYED.” She said, “I heard you, but I don’t want this plant here, I don’t have enough counter top space as it is.” I took her to Zoey’s room so she would get the full scope of how bad it was and we could get the reaction out of the way. So I opened the door and there sat Zoey, eyes almost swelled shut from crying and blurting out, “ I’m so sorry nana.” Mom took one look at it and said, “I really don’t care about the carpet, we were gonna replace it at some point anyway…but can we move the plant?”

I stood there in shock. This is NOT my mom. My mom would have been furious at me. She would have told me this why we didn’t need a cat. So I went and found my dad. I told him what happened so he could blow his top and we could rip the bandaid off. But NOPE. He took one look and said, “well we were gonna replace it.” Saw Zoey and her swollen eyes and chuckled and reassured her it was all ok. That they loved her. It’s just stuff. Stuff can be replaced. WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE AND WHERE ARE MY PARENTS?!

Then it dawned on me. It’s Zoey. The grandchild. And grandchildren are completely different and get completely different reactions than children. Which got me to thinking and I’ve decided that Grandparents are the earthly versions of Jesus’s unconditional love and forgiveness. Seeing it in that light changed my whole perspective and I’m glad I got witness it. And also slightly relieved I’m not having to get a quote on new carpet. Thank God for grandparents ??

_______________
Becky Algood Simmons
March 19, 2022