I always enjoyed the Berenstain Bears series of books as I was growing up. Now I’m enjoying them again as I read them to my children. Each book contains a small lesson, and the book I read to the kids this weekend confronted aging stereo-types. I’m not sure where this particular Week at Grandma’s Berenstain Bears book came from, but I suspect my wife found it at a second hand store or a lawn sale somewhere. I found it on the bookshelf.
Whether you’re a grandparent or a parent sending your kids to your parents, this book represents awesome aging. That’s right – awesome aging! What makes it so awesome? Why, I’m glad you asked.
Mama and Papa bear are going for a second honeymoon, and the cubs will spend the week with their grandparents. Read the conflict:
It didn’t seem like a simple thing to the cubs. They loved Gramps and Gran very much, but . . . well, they just weren’t Mama and Papa.
Besides, Gramps and Gran were sort of . . . old.
Eeeeek! Aaaaaah, and this is where this book’s lesson lies. Now granted, the books does contain a few . . . perhaps unrealistic scenarios, like super strong Gramps carrying the two kids up the stairs with all of their bags, but the cubs do get exposed to their grandparents’ healthy aging lifestyle, by taking part in things like:
- fishing
- cooking
- yo-yo action
- outdoor bird feeding
- and good old square dancing
Alas, the cubs learn that Gran and Gramps are a whole lot of fun, smart, and . . . can even feel the weather in their bones!
