Dear Grandma (or Out of Sight, Out of Mind)
This piece is a memorial to my living Grandma (and all aging people). This flower-patterned couch belonged to her before it was passed on to me. I have made space for her couch in my life, but have I made space from my Grandmother?
Let me start off by saying that this is my confession. I am not condemning anyone of living or indulging in the same selfish desires that I have. Perhaps some viewers will feel a similar “tugging at the heart” – a conviction that we have wanted our parents’ and grandparents’ stuff more than our parents and grandparents. We are lost and wayward children who lust after our inheritance and/or a life free from inconvenience and the costliness of love.
In the Bible, Jesus tells a story of two sons. Often it is referred to as the story of the Prodigal Son. But as we read the story, we learn that both sons value the father’s possessions more than they value and respect their father. And like these two lost sons, we wait (patiently or impatiently) for our inheritance, while Grandma is sent to live apart from us. Out of sight, out of mind.
This piece is about the tough decisions to love others as much as we love ourselves. They certainly are costly choices. But love is always costly.
So, what are we going to do with Dear Grandma?
