Are you in the right place?

LIt’s been a long winter. It came early November with short overcast days. The snow and frigid temperatures that made me wonder what I was doing in Kimberley. Why hadn’t I flown south with the other snow birds?

I sit in the rocking chair, snuggling my 19 month old grand-daughter.
“Book,” she says. I read her “Love you forever” by Robert Munsch, tears in my eyes by the end.
“More,” she says.
After another Dr. Seuss book, I ask her, “Do you want a pancake?” She nods her tiny head and her crystal blue eyes sparkle.

She helps me beat the egg, add the flour and pour the mixture onto the pan. I squeeze lemon juice, dribble on honey then watch her gobble it up.

Last fall, it was a no brainer when my daughter said she was going back to work and her partner a ski racing coach heading to Panorama five days a week. Both my husband and I jumped at the opportunity to look after her. When she arrived two months early, my friend said, “She couldn’t wait to be here.”  She like all babies, was a miracle and needed to be nurtured and treasured.

Of course there were days in December when I wondered why I had disrupted my life. The previous year I had edited not only my life but my memoir throwing out worn out cloths and words. I had just published my memoir, "Circling the Edge" and it needed promotion.
Now it is the spring equinox, the snow is melting and I feel the soft earth under my feet. I have one month left with her. How I will miss her laugh and lust for life.

At the toddler tailgate party the other day, I chatted with the moms and dads of the toddlers who hugged one another a bit too tightly, splashed and ate the melting snow.
A mom came up to me “I finished your book. I absolutely loved it.” I hugged her.
I had thought my memoir would appeal to women of my age. I wrote it to honor women and mothers who give so much of themselves, who share their vulnerabilities with each other and honor their deep emotions.
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How grateful I am for this unique opportunity to get to know my granddaughter and have my memoir appreciated. I am in the right place at the right time.