The Importance of Grandparents

She loves ballet. And the color pink. And books. And her baby brother.

She is my 3½-year-old granddaughter, Isabelle. Izzy for short. She’s tall and lean with a swirl of unruly blonde curls and big brown eyes. In moments, I catch glimpses of her mama, my eldest. Then I see her daddy, who moved across the country from California to Minnesota to marry my daughter. But mostly I see darling Izzy, a preschooler who knows Jesus and ballet and is loved beyond measure by so many. Grandpa and Grandma in the Midwest. Opa and Oma on the West Coast.

What a blessing to be a grandma to Izzy and to Isaac, who is developing a personality at eight months. He’s a wriggling bundle of joy. Keeping up with grandchildren requires a lot of energy. There’s a reason God designed us to raise children at a much younger age.

As a relatively new grandma, I’m still learning. I’ve learned, above all, just how important grandparents are to a child. Grandmother and author, Tina Houser writes in her book, Heirlooms: Passing Faith Stories to Your Grandchildren, that, after parents, grandparents hold “the second most important relationship in that child’s emotional development.” Now that’s a lot of responsibility. But it’s one I’m willing to take on because I love my two grandchildren, and, like Houser, I want them always to know Jesus. I want to leave them with a legacy of faith.

In her book published by Warner Press, this grandmother of three provides practical ways to connect with grandchildren through faith stories, activities, sharing and more. She stresses the importance of being with them, whether in person or via technology.

One simple way to connect, Houser suggests, is simply by watching our grandchildren. I can’t count the times Izzy has asked me to sit on the couch for her ballet performances. I watch and applaud her efforts, sometimes holding back laughter at the less-than-graceful movements of a three-year-old. I want Izzy to know how much I value and cherish her and our time together.

Now that I’m a grandparent, National Grandparents Day, celebrated this year on September 8, holds new joy for me. As King Solomon said in Proverbs 17:6, Children’s children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children (NIV). Not that I necessarily consider myself aged, but compared to Izzy and Isaac, I am. As they age, I expect our relationship to evolve and deepen. Like writer Tina Houser, I want my grandchildren to see that I am a woman of faith by the way I live. She suggests grandparents share their faith stories, those moments that show God’s presence in their lives. As the years pass, new stories will emerge, stories that further bond grandparent and grandchild.

My friend Valerie, whose grandchildren once lived a wide ocean and continent away, wrote a book for her granddaughter. In The Other Side of the World, Valerie writes of her deep love for Zoey, of missing her, and of the differences between Minnesota and Mozambique, Africa. She even lists selected words in English and Portuguese, the two languages spoken by her granddaughter. I can only imagine how Zoey will treasure that personalized picture book penned by her grandma.

The written word holds such power. In her book, Houser writes, “I can’t think of anything that has a bigger impact on sharing your spiritual story than writing a note or a letter.” I agree. There’s something about the written word and the ability to read and reread that can make a deep impression on us. I think of the bundle of letters I have from my grandmother, long gone to be with Jesus, and how I treasure them. Ditto for decades of my mother’s journals.

Years from now, Izzy and Isaac likely won’t recall the toys I gave them for birthdays and Christmas. But I hope they remember the experiences—snuggling together with a picture book, playing Candy Land, picking up twigs in the backyard, building snowmen, drawing with sidewalk chalk, worshiping together in church.... Those memories will remind them of our love and of Jesus’ love for them.

TELL ME: How do you connect with your grandchildren? How do you pass along a legacy of faith? Please add your thoughts in the comments section below.

Audrey Kletscher Helbling will tell you there’s nothing quite like being a grandma. She lives an hour from her grandchildren and jumps at any opportunity to spend time with them. Parents need a night out? Sure, Grandma and Grandpa can watch the kids. She’ll rearrange her schedule to accommodate play time with Izzy and Isaac. Audrey looks forward to someday attending Izzy’s first public ballet recital.