I’M LUCKY ENOUGH to have eight grandchildren – three boys and three girls aged between eighteen and twenty-three – then another girl aged three years old and a one-year-old boy. So there is almost a generation between the first set of grandchildren and the second.
There are not many people who are given the opportunity to have two generations of grandchildren. There is no doubt that I love them all equally, but my wife and I have been able to really enjoy the childhood of the second set as we are of an age to be able to spend so much more time with them.
Our children were born when I was in my late twenties and thirties – the part of my life when I was working hardest to establish my career – and fighting with myself to be able to spend time with them.
The first six grandchildren came along when we were in our fifties and still working hard. I had some time to spare, but never as much as I would have liked. I greatly enjoyed my time with them while they were growing up, but I can’t help but feel that it wasn’t quite enough. When the three elder boys were aged around ten, we took them on a tour of Europe and then did the same for the three girls. Then we took all of them on a cruise when they were in their teens. They were certainly the most enjoyable holidays we have had. Now that they are older, I treasure the excellent relationship that both myself and my wife have with them as they make their own way in the world.
Our two youngest grandchildren were born when we were in to our seventies and finally had more time to spend with the family. I for one, until the arrival of my three-year-old granddaughter, had never given a child a bottle. I could not have imagined that the experience of feeding my grandchild could bring so much joy. We are involved in their daily lives and I would not have it any other way.
For those of you who have grown-up children with no offspring, tell them to get to work quick! I can highly recommend being a grandparent to anyone.
Lord (Swraj) Paul of Marylebone is a leading businessman who was born in India and came to the UK in the 1960s and founded the Caparo Group. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1983. Made a peer in 1996, he became a deputy speaker of the House of Lords in 2008. As well as being Chairman of the Board and Trustee of PiggyBankKids, he also set up the Ambika Paul Foundation which supports children and education.