Granny's Front Porch

 

There are few things in my life that I remember as fondly as my grandmother’s front porch. Everyone called her Big Granny but I’m not sure why. On her tiptoes she probably wasn’t much more than five feet tall. When I was a kid granny’s front porch didn’t matter to me. I couldn’t figure out why we spent so much time there. Sometimes it takes getting older to realize how special some things are.

 

On Sundays after church after everyone had eaten and washed the dishes the family went and sat on granny’s front porch. The smell of chicken and dumplings and baked pies still lingered in the air. A few of us kids would play in the yard; maybe get into an acorn fight if mom and dad weren’t looking. If it were the fall of the year we’d make huge piles of leaves to run across the yard and dive into. Parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and neighbors who had dropped by would sit on the porch. They would talk about lots of stuff but always kept a watchful eye on the kids in the yard.

 

The porch wasn’t much to look at. It was run down with rickety wooden steps leading out to the yard. Wooden rocking chairs and heavy-duty metal chairs and a glider lined up across the porch. There was one chair that Big Granny always sat in and everyone else just picked from the others or sat on the steps.

 

There were no TV’s blaring or Nintendo games. Granny almost never watched TV. We would sit on that porch for hours and before you knew it the sky would be turning dark. It was a time when families talked and listened to each other. There weren’t appointments to keep, ballgames to watch, or emergencies to rush off to.

 

When I was a kid I thought sitting on that porch was stupid. Now I would give anything for those lazy Sunday afternoons relaxing on that porch with my family.

 

The front porch is still there but Big Granny died years ago. Today we stay so busy I have a hard time getting my children to slow down. It seems we never have time to just sit and take time for family. I want so much for them to know how important your family is before they are grown. Big Granny knew.

 

Come to think of it... I guess there was a reason we called her Big Granny after all.

 

Until next time...