grandparents

​Hello kind krafters! It’s so good to be back and I have missed writing and having this blog be a part of my weekly routine. I hope that you’re all doing well and looking forward to spring’s arrival just around the corner!!
 
With the slow departure from the winter months, more people are getting out and participating in weekly events. I know I am definitely busier now and that the cosy snowy nights will soon be disappearing.  One of my workplaces is also getting busier! The Wolfville Farmers’ Market is by far one of my favourite places to shop – and definitely an awesome location to volunteer and work! As well as being a great destination to find fresh and local produce, it’s also the best place to meet new people and reconnect with members of your community. I have made some awesome friendships through working there with people I would probably never have full and in-depth conversations with in my day-to-day life.
 
At the market, I talk to several people who are a similar age to my grandparents, and I have realized how special it is for me to have the opportunity to learn through them. Every Saturday I listen to their stories ranging from fighting in wars and playing hockey with the army, to their first dates and how they asked their significant others to marry them. I feel so honoured that they share their lives with me and I love sitting down with them and chatting over a cup of tea from Just us!. 

​I grew up in England until I was ten years old, and so my relationship with my grandparents has been weekly skype calls and the occasional visit over the pond. I feel like a lot of the time our chats consist of catching up and asking what the other person has been up to over the last little while. They do tell me some random and interesting stories, but I feel like if I saw them more often, I would hear a lot more! Maybe it is because of this, that I get so excited when people share their tales with me at the market. 

From being in these situations at the market, I have come to realize that life can be short and that we should be more communicative with one another. Several things have happened within the last little while to help me understand this, so I thought that I would share a couple!

1. I was recently listening to the musical “Come From Away”, which tells the tragic story of 9/11 and what it was like in a small town in Newfoundland when planes were being diverted to their airport. One of the songs has the line, “so many stories gone – just like that”. This line made me think about how fortunate we are to know people (young and old) and that we should be grateful and open our hearts and ears to them when they come to us for a talk.
2. The other was seeing so many young kids and teenagers walking around with their older relatives when they arrived back from our February break! So many seemed embarrassed to be seen with their parents and were so excited to get back to their university life that they were almost brushing them off completely. Don’t get me wrong, I have DEFINITELY been this person. But now I am able to look back and think of how lucky I am to have my family care for me in that way, and that I should be showing them WAY more gratitude than I do.

 
Basically, what I am trying to say in this long post (oops!) is that we all need to listen more to each other and put ourselves in situations where you’re given a chance to learn from people that you wouldn’t usually get the chance to! It is SO much fun!!
 
Much love kind krafters!!
Rhi xoxo