Last week I told you about my lunch at the Ritz Carlton.  This week I swapped the glitz of the Ritz for the cadence of a cafeteria – a school cafeteria.  I received one of the sweetest invitations I have ever received from my granddaughter, Mia.  The students at her school have the option of inviting their parents to join them for lunch on their birthday.  Mia explained to her teacher that she shares her birthday with her grandmother and asked if she could invite not only her mom for lunch, but also me.  What a privilege.

Happy Birthday, Mia!

It has been many years since I dined at a hinged table with attached seats in a school cafeteria.  The setting is familiar to my childhood – one end of the room is filled with a stage and the other the kitchen with its line of children with serving trays.  The chatter was lively, likely increased by the fact that it was the next to the last day of school.

Times have changed, so we were not allowed to sit at the same table as Mia’s class.  Mia didn’t care.  She was happy to have us there and especially proud of her adorable baby sister, who just turned one.  I believe every girl in her class stopped to coo over her.

The highlight of my day was watching my daughter.  I held back my emotions as I observed her as a mom.  Wasn’t I taking cookies to her class just a short time ago?  Where did the last ten years go?  I don’t know but as I watched Mia offer cookies that she and her mom had baked for her class, I marveled at how quickly they passed – the years, not the cookies, though they went fast, too.

Mia is the best birthday present I ever received.  She launched me into grandmotherhood and I love it.  Not only am I celebrating my birthday and Mia’s birthday, but also ten years of being a grandmother.  I am blessed.