Picking Peas with the Jolly Green Giant

My boys and I got into a bit of an interesting conversation the other day... they wanted to know about "Auntie" Jeanette, a close family friend who has played a bit of a surrogate grandmother role to Alex and Simon, since my own mother died long before they were born...

They were intrigued to discover

that our connection to Auntie Jeanette is actually through their "other grandma" (as we refer to my dead mother), and that Jeanette and their Other Grandma were best friends when they were younger.  Simon wondered if they had had play dates? 

I explained that they undertook many travels and other fun-for-young-adults activities together, and that they often joked around about things, and got silly.  For example, when they went out for a pop, and some men tried to make friends with them, and asked them where they worked, my Mom and Jeanette would tell them, "We work for Christian Dior, cutting the points on ties", or "we pick peas for the Jolly Green Giant"!

The boys found this quite humorous.

Simon commented later that Auntie Jeanette must have been sad when my mom died, because they couldn't go on adventures anymore.

I responded through my tears that although it was true that Auntie Jeanette missed my Mommy, she also had many other friends to go on adventures with, and wasn't always sad anymore.

Ahh, the sweetness, the bitter-sweetness of such young, innocent empathy.  Dear Simon.