Refrigerator Masterpieces

I have a papered refrigerator. Nowhere else in the house is papered; I learned years ago that paper doesn’t stand up to little fingers and rambunctious boys. But the refrigerator is covered with the artwork of grandchildren. When they come to my house one of the things they like to do is color. To that extent I keep coloring books and crayons replenished on their little table.

Their mother wants to know why they don’t color at their own home, at least not as much as here. I don’t know. Maybe it’s the choice of pictures in the coloring books, or the chance to use fresh crayons. I remember how wonderful it was to get new crayons and how it motivated me to color more pictures.

So these pictures are displayed with pride on the frig. They use every magnet available, and orderly cover the entire front with their masterpieces. 

Last night I was researching horse poems for a project, and came across a song entitled “Watercolor Ponies”.* The songwriter talks of the pictures of water color ponies on his refrigerator door, and how soon the children will be gone and the water color ponies will ride away. Great song to remind parents, and grandparents, how time flies and children do not stay little long. 

Next time they color I am going to join them. And when it’s time to hang more pictures on the frig and there’s no room, I will have them choose the ones they want to save in a folder, so some day when they are grown, I can look back and remember these days of childhood pastimes, coloring pictures for grandma’s frig.

*Watercolor Ponies by Wayne Watson, Nov 15, 2005 album “How Time Flies”