Grandpa Told Me

I was sitting in the doctor’s office waiting to be released, after getting a shot, browsing the magazines to kill time, when I had an epiphany. The music softly playing in the background seemed to be calling me. I must admit to being just a little shocked, as my favorite genre of music is not country, and this was certainly country. But I heeded the calling and listened. No, a great revelation from a ghost of country past, was not calling for my immediate attention. And …before you ask, I had not been given a strange drug, creating hallucinations. It was a memory from the back files of my mind, triggered by the song, gently entering my ear.

It was like entering a different time zone, as memories flashed on and off like neon lights. Little bits and pieces of my life, filling my very core, helping create the person I have become. Memories tucked in so tight, as to not be lost or destroyed by life …yet, sustaining me, like the breath of life itself. The memories were vivid and childlike, filling all my senses to overflowing. I was caught off guard by the magnitude of feelings swelling inside me, like a balloon over filling with air. I listened, I loved and I remembered!

The song was by Kenny Chesney, and he sang with great country flair. The song, Grandpa Told Me So, is probably very familiar to many of my readers, but new to my ears. For those who have not heard the lyrics, I jotted down a few words. Let me share….. If you don’t get in the water you’re never gonna learn to swim. He said a snake is just as scared of you as you are of him. He could tell by the moon when the fish would bite. Seems there was nothing that he didn’t know. And as a kid I believed because Grandpa told me so….or something like that! The song went on to reveal more words of country wisdom from Grandpa, and that is what started my mind reeling.

Flashing before me was my Grandpa, with his pearls of wisdom, I always loved to hear. Words that helped to shape me. Words that built a house of self-esteem around me, brick by brick. Words that offered comfort in a world that could be a bit scary for a little girl. Words that hugged me, cherished me, and covered me with love, like a favorite quilt. Words I hid deep in my existence, for fear they might escape. And, if that was not enough, he passed the gift of love to his son, who, not only continued to fill my soul, but helped to shape his grandchildren, as well.

As for  the epiphany, the song had suddenly revealed to me, why … and who … I am. I did not create myself, I was created by the words of all the nurturing people in my life. And I knew, that I was something special because…. Grandpa Told Me So!

Listen to the song, and maybe you will have the same experience. Or, at the least, you will remember how very “cool” your grandpa was, or is! And remember, “pretty is as pretty does,” “anything can be a curse word, it’s how you say it, not what you say,” “it’s what’s inside that counts,” “we create our own feelings of happiness or sadness, so always create happiness,” and “don’t give up, keep trying, if you want it bad enough, you’ll make it happen” …and I did, Grandpa!

Source: K. P. Guessen