Home Comforts

A grandparent is a treasure. You find the older you get the more you appreciate them as a loved one. The amount of time they've spent on this earth is incomprehensible to you, a grandchild, two generations behind. The experiences they've had, in decades that you consider recent-history, the changes they've witnessed, and the lessons they've learnt in their life is admirable by vast amounts.

A grandparent's home is a comfort. It's where you are truly looked after. Tea is always made, and lovingly homemade sweet treats presented on a daintily patterned plate they've had for years and years, bought from a home ware store which is unlikely to still be in business.

The trinkets collected throughout their life are proudly displayed, and you only notice how many there are until you pay close attention.

There's that tomato-shaped cooking timer that you remember thinking was really cool when you were younger, still there, but less fascinating now you're an adult. It's just an egg timer but you smiled when you found it the other day: it still works. The wind chimes for decoration and the paperweights along the window ledge. There's the collection of union jack flags, displaying true patriotism. You see them and look back at that time they picked up a flag in that tacky seaside town souvenir shop with a smile, at least ten years ago now, saying that'll look lovely displayed in my flat. Along with those come the vast amount of colourful fridge magnets of holidays they've been on, places they've visited, or ones they've been gifted by sons, daughters, siblings.

Then there's the recent additions to the home. That cutout of some 'hunky' man, probably a Hollywood actor your Nan has taken a fancy too, cut out the other weeks' newspaper and blu-tacked onto the cabinet. Then the obligatory cutout of Elvis, or similar musician from the fifties or sixties that you personally aren't a massive fan of, but appreciate the talent and how your grandparent must've adored and danced to them when they were your age, just like you do with musicians and bands you love now. The calendar they got free with the newspaper last year, photos of baby Prince George which gives your Nan the biggest smile on her face. It's scribbled with plans to meet friends for tea, and small outings planned with their community group to visit the seaside on the weekend.

Of course you've got the few technology bits that you or your parents have helped set up, bringing them into the 21st century, purely to make communication easier. The flip phone with larger sized numbers on is what they've settled for, and while the continuous questions are thrown at you with how do I do this again? You watch adoringly as they pop on their glasses and punch the buttons at a painfully slow pace.

These things make up the familiar background that's there when you visit your dear grandparents, you're there to focus on spending time with them, not the things around you. But it's trinkets and collectables, the home comforts, that you don't even pay attention to, that are wonderful to think about and realise when you do.

Laura Sewell