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“The nice thing about us being four and four now is that Sunday best things are balanced – we're so glad you're here, Glendella!”
Eleanor (11), Edwina (8), and Amanda (7) were all hugged up on their cousin turned adoptive sister Glendella Ludlow (10) in the few moments they had to relax between Sunday breakfast and getting ready for church on the lawn with their neighbors the Trents and Stepforths. Everyone was getting on the Zoom call for the Good Neighbors Fellowship, which always had a time to pan every family connected after the service so everyone could see each other and wave, and being in Tinyville was special because the Hamiltons, cousins to the Ludlows, still had eight children of tender age, and the Ludlows, Trents, and Stepforths could see and wave to them across the field that separated their homes.
This also gave the Ludlow grandparents occasion to work with the Ludlow man-training and woman-training units about polite behavior toward each other with dress-up. Capt. R.E Ludlow was a classic Virginian gentleman born, and although Mrs. Ludlow was a San Franciscan second-generation flower child at heart, both of them loved channeling what their grandchildren naturally did anyway: imitating how well their grandparents treated each other.
The Ludlow grandchildren were four girls and three boys, and the three boys were assigned to make sure their sisters were seated and comfortable on the lawn before they sat down. The challenge was the age gap: Andrew and George were 10 and 9, and Grayson and Lil' Robert were 6 and 5 … the younger Ludlow grandsons did the best they could and were into it, but they really needed more help with all the “accompany the lady” things they were learning.
Glendella solved the problem. She just took on Lil' Robert, and that left a natural grouping that made sense given the other personalities: super-calm Andrew took on fiery Edwina, excitable George was balanced out by elegant and chill Eleanor, and that left Grayson and Amanda to to adorably figure everything out without difficulty because they both were deeply calm and complemented each other with Grayson being more cerebral and Amanda being the empath.
The thing about Lil' Robert: he would always rise to a challenge. There was a five-year age gap between him and Glendella, but...
“I got this!” he said.
“Of course you do,” Glendella said.
Lil' Robert always studied his grandfather and namesake carefully, so he just locked in on watching how his grandfather set up his grandmother's chair and brought her a bottle of water and just did what he saw, although this led to him dragging a chair big enough for Glendella halfway across the yard …
“I got this!” he said to everybody who could see the size differential was going to be a problem. “This is what I get up and workout with Papa and Cousin Harry for – I got this!”
“You only have ten minutes before service starts, Robert,” Capt. Ludlow said as he checked his watch.
“I got this!”
It took Lil' Robert nine minutes, but sure enough, he got the chair in position and went back and got some water for Glendella.
“That was so much harder for you than for your big brothers – thank you so much!” Glendella said, and kissed him on his sweaty forehead.
“You're welcome – anytime and every time, see, because, I'm Robert Edward Ludlow too – I mean, three – and just like Papa, I'm gonna make sure you're good all the time because of the Robert Edward Ludlowness also vested in me … but I gotta get this vest off because, see, it's too hot out here.”
Glendella helped him with his outer clothes, and then, since service was starting, helped him climb right up into the chair with her, and there they sat snuggling and happy through the service.
“Well, I'll be,” Mrs. Ludlow said as she looked over and found them smiling in their sleep after the service. “They really are imitating us, Robert; nothing like a Sunday afternoon snuggle.”
“Those were the days,” he said with a smile. “Only another 13 years before Lil' Robert is in West Point and we are empty nesters -- I'll have your snuggle for you, Lord willing!”