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“That’s true,” Mom said, fondly stroking a strand of my wavy blonde hair. “Well, there’s much to be done yet before dinner so we better get back to work.”
“Will Dad and Uncle Jacob be okay with Grandma?” I asked them.
Mom laughed at that. “Don’t worry. Mom will keep them both out of trouble. I mean, what could go wrong when they’re just in the living room?”
Apparently, something did.
After we finished the preparations for dinner, we found all three of them arguing hotly. In front of them, there were puzzle pieces scattered all over the floor.
“What in the world…?” I muttered.
“I’m telling you; somebody stole my puzzle pieces!” Dad told them. “These puzzles are brand new and they were complete when I got them out of the box.”
Uncle Jacob shook his head. “I’m missing a few pieces, too.”
“What happened here?” Mom asked in confusion.
“We decided to do a puzzle race while you girls were busy in the kitchen,” Dad explained. “We thought it was a great idea to pass the time.”
Grandma shrugged at the both of them. “Maybe Buddy or Cookie got them.”
“Maybe,” Uncle Jacob muttered, although he didn’t look too convinced.
“Anyway, can you please set your puzzle feud aside?” Aunt Martha said. “It’s time for dinner already.”
Uncle Jacob looked a little grouchy still but Aunt Martha knew just how tobutterhim up.
“I made corn wheels,” she told him mischievously.
That made him instantly perk up. “The ones with the spicy honey butter?”
She nodded.
“Alright!” he immediately stood up.
We all laughed at his quick response. It was already quite well-known in the family how much Uncle Jacob loved Aunt Martha’s corn wheels. He would eat them with almost anything!
Lately, though, she had stopped making them quite as often due to dietary recommendations their doctor made for the both of them.
“We’re not getting any younger,” she told me earlier in the kitchen. “We’ve got to watch what we eat now.”
Which was probably why Uncle Jacob was so eager to leave the matter of his missing puzzle pieces at the mention of those delicious corn wheels—he probably hadn’t eaten them in a long time.
My dad turned hopeful eyes to my mom as if to say, “What special dish did you make for me, too?”
Mom smiled indulgently at him. “I made your favorite steak.”
Dad’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. “Well, who cares about a few puzzle pieces?” he grinned. “Spending time with the family is the best!”
We all laughed at the two men who were behaving like children earlier and their wives who knew just how to placate them.
Grandma Margaret smiled at the scene before her and nodded her head sagely. “That is true. Family is the best. I’m not getting younger anymore but this I know—you should enjoy each day with your loved ones as much as you can. You should live every single day as if it was your last. Hold on fast to the ones you love and grab onto luck when you can.”
Mom smiled at her. “Those are wise words indeed, Margaret.” She turned to Dad and tilted her head up at him. “You should listen to your own mother!”
“And that is why we need to eat more corn wheels!” Uncle Jacob declared. “Life is too short to be wasted on tasteless food!”
“Life will be shorter if you keep on eating unhealthy food!” Aunt Martha pointed out.
