Oh, people try. They try hard to achieve perfection through education, sports, practice and living. When I got married, for example, I was going to be a perfect father, a perfect husband and have perfect children.   

HAH! All of you perfectionists out there know how that turned out.

No, life is, sadly, a series of hits, misses and many mistakes. And that, I suppose, is why the creative process allows us to have....grandchildren.

Nobody teaches people how to raise their children. We get advice, of course, usually from our parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents and even our neighbors and the people we work with about how to overcome a problem at home. Sometimes the advice works and more often, it probably doesn't.

I enjoyed raising my son and daughter. I taught them to play tennis and baseball. We thrilled to the fun at DisneyWorld, Sea World, Universal City and riding dune buggies at White Sands, New Mexico.

I tried to be a good dad. I listened to their problems, suggested solutions, and made a half-hearted stab at helping them with their homework. I felt I was making some progress. And then one morning, bingo! They were 18, my wife and I were divorcing, and life had changed mightily.

Well, I have news for you. It isn't all over. Having kids is just half of the game of life. The real game is having grandchildren. Of all the joys of living – and there are many out there – my relationship with my three grandchildren, ages 17, nine and eight have been among the most joyful.

Here are just a few of the things I get from my grandkids and it happens almost on a daily basis.

They keep my intellect alive and growing by asking questions. Those questions are truly amazing, even if some of them are impossible to answer. “Grandpa, did you ever see an angel?” “Look at that plane flying – what keeps it up in the sky?” “Grandpa, you know Mom doesn't want you to smoke, so why are you smoking out here in the woodshed?”

Grandkids can even help reaffirm your faith in God. We attend a small church near our home in Springfield, Missouri. I am in my 70s and sometimes my joints balk when it comes time to get out of bed on a Sunday morning to get ready for church.

That is when my grandkids get into the scene. Their energy is boundless. They remind me of the Energizer Rabbit, always on the move, and generally running. I don't think the feet of Harrison,  my eight-year-old Dennis the Menace grandchild, ever hit the ground.

No, grandchildren are good for your health. Hey, if you have a couple of grandkids and a dog to raise, you can throw away all those pills to correct your heart or high blood pressure. You won't need them if you just try to keep up with the children and the dog.

I often walk the kids to school. Sadie, our Alaskan Husky, loves that and goes absolutely crazy when I reach for the leash hanging on the closet door. Yesterday when I walked them to the elementary school half a dozen blocks from our home, a sudden wind blew the autumn leaves into the air. Josie, my granddaughter, ran into the swirling leaves laughing and dancing. With the biggest smile, she turned to me and said, “Look, Grandpa – Jesus is having fun playing with us!”

Now if you will excuse me, I need to take Sadie, my Alaskan Husky, out for a walk.

Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author, ghostwriter and humorist from Springfield, Missouri. You can contact him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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