This is a photo taken of me on my forth birthday, exactly twenty-four years ago. I'm blowing out the candles on my cake, the chocolate cake that my grandma Mary, my dad's mum, made for every birthday and special occasion. My grandparents would arrive with the cake on it's special cake-stand with the tin lid, decorated with mistletoes, and my siblings and I would squirm all through dinner in anticipation for the dense, moist chocolate cake we knew was coming.
In the background of the photo is my Pa, my mum's dad. I was so lucky that I had all four of my grandparents living within 20 minutes of my home growing up; that I was able to celebrate nearly every birthday with all four of them; that I had and have such amazing relationships with each one.
Oh man, I would do anything for another one of my grandma's cakes. Or another visit with her. While eating cake.