Four Meaningful Ways to Connect with Your Grandparents

Grandparents are those wonderful people who have, at one point or the other, taken care of us as children and even as adults.

Grandparents are those wonderful people who have, at one point or the other, taken care of us as children—and even as adults. However, we tend to take them for granted and have those moments when you don’t know what to say to your grandparents.

Sometimes you end up spending your entire visit on your phone and waiting for that obligatory trip to end. Or maybe your grandparents live in another country and you don’t get to see them as often as you would like. So, how do you keep that connection alive? Here are four easy ways to get started.

1. Wealth of Knowledge

Grandparents have a wealth of knowledge and a connection to an era of life we never knew. There is a whole lifetime worth of stories to share with you about how life was like, or people they knew, how to do something you never knew how to do, and stories about your parents! The best way to connect is to start asking them questions—it could take a couple of tries, and maybe you’ll only get a few one-word answers at first, but keep trying; you’ll find a topic they enjoy talking or teaching you about and bam! You’ve got a connection.

2. Snail Mail

If you don’t have the luxury of having grandparents close by or those you can visit across the country, then sit down and write a letter. There is nothing quite like receiving a handwritten letter from a grandparent or making your grandparent smile with a letter from you.

If you want to go all out, you get to draw a picture in your letter, add stickers (totally can get this from restaurants), and send photos of you and what you’re up to in your life. This way, you’ll also always have a written record chronicling events in your grandparent’s lives.

3. You Used to Call Me On My…Telephone

Pick up your phone and call your grandparents. They may not want to talk to you, and may end up talking about the weather, or something totally mundane—but that’s okay, listen anyway! Tell them about your day, what you’re doing in school, what your major is and what that means. If you speak another language, speak so you can practice your language. Ask them to tell you a story from your culture. Ask them what’s happening in your native country and how they feel about it. Often, grandparents who live in another country feel lonely but talking to them makes them feel connected no matter where you are.

4. Cook-Off

Your parents had to learn their fabulous cooking skills from somewhere. If you aren’t in college yet, you will be soon—and when you’re tired of dining hall food, you’re going to want to be able to cook something other than Ramen (although it is yummy). Cooking home cooked meals with your grandparent’s trade secrets ups your game big time. You’ll be able to cook for friends, thus making even more friends. Also, you’ll never go hungry—trust me, this is a blessing. When you have a family of your own you’ll also have the skillsets to be able to cook and pass something on to your family.

Have a great idea on how to connect? Share them in the comments below.