Last week, on a train in Tokyo, I watched two grandmothers go to war. With candy. A tiny Japanese grandma sat across from an American family. Their little boy, maybe six, was tired and about to cry. She opened her purse and handed him a candy. His American grandmother saw this. She opened her own purse, pulled out a Werther's Original, leaned across the aisle, and handed it to the Japanese grandma. The Japanese grandma accepted it. Bowed. Then went back into her purse and handed the boy two more candies. The American grandma went back into hers. Peppermint. For the Japanese grandma. And a Werther's for the boy's sister, who hadn't even asked. This went on for four stops. By the time they got off, that kid had six pieces of candy in his pockets. Nobody had said one word in a common language. The two grandmas looked at each other, and both of them burst out laughing so hard the whole train car started smiling. In Japan, grandmothers in Osaka are famous for this. They always carry candy. They give it to strangers on the street. It has its own cute name: "ame-chan." Little Mr. Candy. I had no idea American grandmas did the exact same thing. And now I have questions. Serious questions. Why is it always Werther's? Is there a law? Do you get a lifetime supply when your first grandchild is born? Is the Kleenex really kept up the sleeve? All of them? Why the sleeve? Is there always a little coin purse that goes "click"? My own grandmother carried three things in her purse. Always. Candy. Tissues. And a thousand yen, folded very, very small, "for emergencies." Every time I left her house, she pushed it into my pocket when my mother wasn't looking. Every time. Even when I was 35 and had a job. When she died, my mother opened her purse. Candy. Tissues. And an envelope with my name on it. "For emergencies." So please, America. I need to know. What did your grandma always carry? Werther's? Butterscotch? Peppermints that were a little bit stuck together? What was in grandpa's shirt pocket? A pocketknife? A comb? A roll of Life Savers? What was in the glove box of his truck? A map from 1988? Tell me everything. The more specific, the better.