GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 36
handy grand The toy box Three generations of memories By Ann PeAchmAn The author and her father, Luffey everson (“believe it or not, that was his real name, not a nickname”), at Niagara Falls and at home. And, of course, the toy box. Dad—Bubba—who was in long-term care at this time, had rarely used words to convey feelings. When I was losing the battle with sleep deprivation after my second child, he bought a baby swing. He took my children when I was tied down with work. His “love language” was giving, and he spoke it clearly. I don’t remember him saying it—but I always knew I was loved. My daughter pulled the toy box into her room and filled it with pillowslips and doilies. When she married, it was again empty. One day, I knelt beside it and ran my hands over the faded lid, remembering all the lives that box had touched: my father, my “little girl” self, my husband, my children. I pulled out my paints and began to carefully restore the faded characters. With each brush stroke, they were resurrected. The reborn toy box was completed in time to welcome Hannah, our first grandchild. Now 2, she loves to explore the treasures it contains. My father didn’t live to meet his great-grandchild, but one day Hannah and I will kneel together in front of the toy box, and I will tell her the story of my Daddy who made it. And together, we will dream. G I For a few years, it was empty. Then, it became the repository for pillow slips, doilies and teaspoons. remember iT as a container of dreams. When I was a little girl, our newspaper featured woodworking projects. My father constructed several of these, but one was unique. It was for me. The toy box filled the entire area underneath a window in my bedroom. If I sat on it, my feet dangled. It was turquoise, with figures of children painted in a German folk art style. It held Tiny Tears, Speedy Alka Seltzer, Barbie and Ken and wardrobes for both…. For a few years, it was empty. Then, it became the repository for pillow slips, doilies and teaspoons. I pretended nonchalance and called it “my hopeless chest.” But I was wired to be a wife and mother. I married, and the toy box traveled from house to house and, as three children eventually arrived, from room to room. The box got battered; the paint faded on the sides and was completely worn off the lid. It seemed solid, but I wondered—with the children past toy stage—if it were, at last, time to throw it out. I pulled it into the hallway with this thought in mind, and my daughter saw me. “You can’t get rid of that,” she said. “Bubba made it!” She was right. 36 GRAND AUGUST 2009
GRAND Magazine - August 2009
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of GRAND Magazine - August 2009
GRAND Magazine - August 2009
Contents
GRAND Central
You Can Get Anything That You Want
Woodstock '09: Still Rockin'
We Were Stardust: We Were Golden...
Yakety-Yak
Crafty Grands
Ask GRAND
Dual Personalities
The Toy Box
Love Is Messy
Resources
GRAND Finale
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - intro
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - GRAND Magazine - August 2009
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Cover2
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 3
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 3a
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 3b
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 4
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 5
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Contents
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 7
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 8
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 9
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 10
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 11
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 12
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - GRAND Central
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 14
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 15
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 16
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 17
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 18
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 19
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - You Can Get Anything That You Want
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 21
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 22
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 23
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 24
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Woodstock '09: Still Rockin'
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - We Were Stardust: We Were Golden...
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 27
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Yakety-Yak
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 29
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Crafty Grands
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 31
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Ask GRAND
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 33
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Dual Personalities
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 35
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - The Toy Box
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 37
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Love Is Messy
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 39
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 40
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 41
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 42
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 43
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 44
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 45
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 46
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Resources
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - GRAND Finale
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - 49
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Cover3
GRAND Magazine - August 2009 - Cover4
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