Wednesday, July 26, 2006 | 7:28 a.m.
My father was right.
Actually, my dad was right about most things in life, even when we knew he was wrong. As it always turned out, though, he was way ahead of his time and most of us hadn't quite caught up with him to understand.
This is no more true than in his feelings about his grandchildren. It is a sentiment I have heard over and over again from every one of my friends and acquaintances who have been so blessed. Simply put, there is nothing so precious as a grandchild.
I am proud to say that I now know firsthand what all the fuss is about.
When my beautiful little daughter Amy was born, her Poppa Hank wrote in this space about the excitement on the maternal grandmother's face as she stepped off the plane from Phoenix, practically onto a cloud of air that carried her to the hospital and her daughter's bed where she saw her beautiful little Amy for the first time.
It was a rainy Tuesday, but for Rachel and Arnold Smith it was lucky for a child to be born during a heavy rain. "I can't imagine anything that can drive away the clouds and bring sunshine more than a newborn baby, so it is lucky for a child to be born at any time - lucky for the world because if there weren't any little babies and children there could only be adults - and what a miserable world that would be," Hank wrote.
This past Sunday, it was a beautiful sunny day - which was lucky for us because had it been rainy the traffic in Southern California would have been more oppressive, if that is possible - when Myra and I learned what my father was talking about over 30 years ago and what grandparents the world over have been beaming about since the beginning of recorded pride.
A little miracle named Oliver was born to that little girl who so many years ago wowed her Poppa Hank and caused her Grandma Rachel to leap over puddles. This time, it was Amy's great-grandparents, Arnold, Rachel and Barbara, who stared in awe and wonderment at this little package of hopes and dreams who came along at a time in their lives when new life gives new life and more reason to press on.
Of course, most of the work was done by my beautiful Amy with an able and incredible assist from her husband and our new son, Paul. His parents, Roz and John, themselves old hands at grandparenting because they already have one, were just as excited as everyone else who crowded the waiting room, hoping for a glimpse of the newest member of this latest generation. There were no puddles for Roz to jump over but had there been, she would have floated weightlessly over them, so high was her elation at this greatest of all miracles.
So, what about Amy's mom, you ask?
She is already a perfect grandmother, although we must not use that word around her. She will come up with a name that more befits her status and youthful appearance and will work it out with young Oliver when he shows any signs of caring about such things.
But, as a grandmother, the first one ever so it seems, she is a superstar. Maybe there is a bit too much advice this early on - she has had over 30 years to practice this skill on her daughter - and maybe there are a few too many questions to which there are no answers just yet - again, she has had a great deal of practice in this area - but there is no question that Myra will set the bar for grandmas to come. She is just that good at it already.
As for me, I can't help thinking about my father's words so many years ago.
"I suppose I speak for all generations who were too young and too busy when children were being brought up to feel the keen responsibility we feel for this second generation of little ones.
"What I do with the rest of my life will affect their future and somehow my life and the way I live it has become more important because of them."
In this crazy world, a world in which it is not that farfetched to question why we would want to subject such innocence to the kind of inhumanity with which we must deal, it becomes even more clear when I look into the unfocused eyes of little Oliver, who is looking for his place in this big, new world that there is much work to do and not that much time to get it done.
And that is why these little ones keep coming. That is why Paul and Amy have done such a good deed for the rest of humanity. That is why grandchildren arrive when they do. It is all about the future and it is all about giving those of us who have managed to mess up the present the opportunity and the incentive to fix things so that these little people can grow up in a place where peace and happiness are the norm.
As for me? I cannot be happier, and I cannot be more grateful to Paul and Amy for giving me my little Oliver. In this respect, I stand on the shoulders of all the grandparents who have come before and who have had the joy and felt the responsibility I now feel.
The words are already old, but I really can't help thinking about tomorrow because today gives me every reason to do so with purpose.
Welcome to our world, Oliver Michael Arenson. You have already made it so much better.
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