The Rider Chronicles 5 – Grandpa’s Work

A couple weeks ago we camped with Rider and his parents.  This adventure was in conjunction with a music festival we attended where Rider’s father was selling his company’s beverage.  I was glad for a mini-vacation, the chance to spend some time away from home at a lovely site along the Hudson river about an hour north of New York City.  I was especially grateful for the weekend because it gave me time with Rider, the first I’d had since his birth day.

I enjoyed holding him and watching him in that outdoor setting.  I think he liked it too.  He loved being held face up so he could see the trees and sky.  I was also glad to be there to give his mother a break, even if for short periods at a time.

Grandpa hard at work

Our first morning there, I was holding the sweet, wee infant and watching the campsite’s hustle and bustle.  Six of us, plus Rider, were camping together and it seemed everyone was  doing something.  Camping is fun but it’s also work.  My wife was folding bedding, getting it out of the way.  My son was carrying things from our area to the booth where he was making things ready for a day of selling kombucha.  One of the people there with us was  preparing the meal.  Another was digging things out of the cooler.   Anybody passing by, glancing in our direction, might have wondered at  the beehive of activity, at all those campers over there, so busy…

…except for the gent with the baby.  I was simply holding him, cuddling my beautiful grandson, and he was just lying there, content and inquisitive, looking at the world around him.  We’ve flipped through many calendars since I held our own babies.  It has been a long time but like riding a bicycle, it’s something you don’t forget.  And being the grandfather, all I had to do was hold him.  No other worries.  Though I walked around with him plenty that morning, at this ant farm moment I was simply sitting.  At first, I felt a little funny not “doing” anything.  Usually, I would have been in the thick of it, carrying this, folding that, taking out the garbage and being a busy bee myself.  Right then, I was content doing grandpa’s work: holding Rider.  It was the only task I was interested in, the best job of all.

About literarylee

I sling words for a living. Always have, always will. Some have been interesting and fun; most not. These days, I write the fun words early in the morning before the adults are up and make me eat my Cream of Wheat.
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