Jalisa and Merlin are at the door, eager to meet their first grandchild. They’re also happy to get their first look at their daughter’s new home.
Jalisa: This is a nice place.
Merlin: *looks around* Yeah, it reminds me of the house where I grew up.
Me-Me leads them upstairs.
The upstairs is a mess, and Me-Me becomes very aware of that once she’s back there with her parents.
Melisa: We have a bit of cleaning to do.
Jalisa: The baby is what’s important right now. You’ll find time for cleaning later.
Her parents always kept a neat house (aside from Jay’s room, of course), so Me-Me still feels terrible about the mess. She grabs the vacuum while her parents enter Wade’s nursey and lay eyes on him for the first time.
Jalisa: Awww, Merlin! Look at him – our grandson! I want to hold him, but he’s sleeping so peacefully.
Merlin: I still remember these days. We need to let him sleep.
Jalisa and Merlin watch Wade, longing to hold him as he sleeps.
My last class is behind me, and I’m now an official college graduate! But my mind is on Me-Me and my son. I learned from my mother that there’s not as much room for self once you have a child. Selfishness begins to fade away, and every thought becomes about that child. It’s already happening to me because I completely forgot that today is my birthday. I’m entering adulthood and fatherhood on the same day.
I’m drawn upstairs by the sudden sound of the vacuum. When I get up there, I see Me-Me hard at work cleaning.
Kai: What are you doing? You should be resting, not cleaning.
Melisa: I couldn’t just leave it undone. My parents are here!
I get where she’s coming from, but I wish she’d let me take care of things like this until she’s rested up a bit.
Jalisa seems to be thinking the same thing. She helps out with the cleaning by emptying the trash cans upstairs. I greet her, then go into the nursery where Merlin is standing and holding Wade. Jalisa hurries back into the room for her turn to officially meet her grandson. I’m just happy that he’s not crying. He seems to love the extra attention.
There’s irony in watching little Dub with his grandparents because this house once belonged to my grandparents. And I never had a chance to meet them. I doubt they even knew I existed. I try not to let myself dwell in situations that I can’t control, but it still makes me angry that so much has been taken away from me without my say so.
All I can do is move on and make sure little Dub never has to feel the regret that I try to suppress daily. My job now is to take care of my family, which means taking care of this land so that it’ll all start to pay off. So I change into my work clothes and head out while Me-Me and Dub rest.
Somehow Merlin learned that today is not only Wade’s but also Kai’s birthday. It would be a shame not to celebrate such a special day, so Merlin does his part by making him a birthday cake just before he and Jalisa have to leave to check into their hotel.
I only make it halfway through my tasks before I’m exhausted. I also have to pee, and dirt covers me from head to toe. It makes me question if farm life is really for me. The work never stops, there are no days off, and you have no idea if it’ll all pay off until the end of the season. So I’m second-guessing everything when I finally get to the bathroom.
Ma and Mr. Washington show up before I have a chance to shower and wash off the day’s stress. So I hobble out to greet them. Ma hugs me, then steps back to take a good long look at me.
Prosperity: *concerned* What happened to you?
I’m suddenly longing for those days when I could cry on ma’s shoulders and give her all of my problems to fix. But I’m a grown man with a wife and child now. So it’s my shoulders that have to withstand the weight of my issues.
Kai: Nothing – just farm work
Prosperity: *not convinced* Kai, you need help.
Kai: I can handle it, ma.
The words come out easy but are a complete contrast to the reality of the situation. I’m in over my head. There’s no doubt about it, and ma can see it.
Prosperity: You’re going to work yourself into an early grave, son. It’s okay to admit you need some help. Hire a gardener – I’m not suggesting it. I’m telling you to do it.
Kai: Okay, I will. As soon as I –
Prosperity: Now, Kai! I know what it’s like to have a child and try to take on too much. You cannot be a good father if you spread yourself too thin.
She’s right. There’s no way I’m going to be capable of doing all this work without some help. And I know she won’t rest until I do it, so I pull out my phone and hire a gardener right there.
Prosperity: Thank you. Now, where’s my grandson?
I lead her inside and show her to Wade’s bedroom before making a beeline to my room. A warm shower and a nap will do wonders.
Peri enters the bedroom of her first grandson. She cried when Kai called her and told her they named him after her daddy and granddaddy. She loves the Banks name and all that it stands for, but something in her always felt that she should carry the Wade name too. But now, her grandson will make sure that daddy and Pop-Pop’s legacy will live on.
Peri steps closer to her daughter-in-law and stares down at the sweet face of baby Wade. The colors suddenly return as vivid as they were when she was a child. Happy, bright greens flash a brief moment in front of her eyes before fading into some forgotten place in her soul where her most colorful emotions live.
Prosperity: He’s so precious, Me-Me. Kai told me that you came up with his name.
Melisa: I did.
Prosperity: You are a gem. I thank you with all of my heart for that.
Melisa: You’re welcome. Would you like to hold your grandson?
Prosperity: I can’t think of anything I want to do more.
(Generation 3 Chapter Summaries)
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