4 Ways We Can Be Kinder To Our Grandparents

April 22, 2020

If you are lucky enough to still have your grandparents around, you likely appreciate their love, advice, and wisdom whenever they visit or you visit them.

But sometimes, our hectic schedules get the better of us, and those visits start to become few and far between. They may not voice it, but they probably wish that they could see more of you, or that you picked up the phone now and again.

Now that the pace of life is starting to slow down for some of us, it is an ideal time to think of what we can do to be kinder to our grandparents. Here are some ideas.

Call Them

It’s a simple piece of advice, but it’s important all the same. There are so many people that we make a mental note of calling or texting, but our grandparents should be a priority. Try to make calling your grandparents a regular part of your weekly schedule; try setting a reminder on your phone if it helps.

Sometimes the time goes so fast when we are working that the weeks pass by without us realizing. But for our grandparents, who may not have much in the way of social contact, these weeks can seem a long time. The longer you leave it between phone calls, the more hesitant you become about making the call in the first place. However, when you keep in contact often, the phone calls need only be short and sweet, yet you’ll get to know so much more about them, including their daily routine and the things they enjoy doing.

Take Them on Vacation!

If you are planning a family vacation once lockdown restrictions are lifted, why not consider inviting your grandparents? We have all suffered the effects of isolation, but none more so than our grandparents. Rather than send them a postcard wishing they were there, bring them along and involve them in your family’s activities. Better still, involve them in the planning stages; they might have a bucket list of destinations they have always wanted to go to but never had the chance or the option of someone to go with.

If mobility is an issue for them, find ways to work around it. For example, you could treat them to a foldable mobility scooter that is lightweight and airline friendly. You can find all the top models at Electric Wheelchairs USA.

Make Them Something

Sending a card in the post when the holidays roll around is a nice gesture, but there isn’t much thought behind it. Instead, why not consider making them something whenever there is a special occasion? If money is usually tight – and it may be even more so due to the current pandemic – it still shouldn’t stop you from being able to give your grandparents a token of your appreciation. For example, you could make them a scrapbook with recent family photos, and space for them to add their own. The older we get, the more focused we become on things with sentimental value rather than material possessions, so they are bound to appreciate something you have spent time and effort on.

Cook for Them

If your grandparent(s) lives alone, they may not have the inclination to cook themselves a nice hearty meal. Instead, they may just use up whatever they have in their cupboards. Imagine their delight then, if you were to plate them up a home-cooked meal! If they are still in isolation, you can leave it on their doorstep for them to heat up, and once life returns to normal, you can consider inviting them round once a week for dinner. This could give them something to look forward to every Wednesday, for example, and sitting around a table gives you all a good chance to catch up properly.