Getting Older

This last week has been an interesting one.  Its the last week of school for the youngsters around here and tomorrow will be it.  No more child and teen care 7 hours per day.  Rats.  Now they’ll expect quality activities each and every day.  But most of all, today the one surviving family grandparent had her own change.  She is getting older and I remember my own Mom doing that.  Its like the sentence we all have and the tomorrow we all will share.  She though lives alone and ended up falling two days ago and sitting on the floor; unable to move or get food or water and not even able to reach the phone.  Its difficult when you know someone that is strong, able, full of stubborness suddenly lose all that and become this frail human.  it brings me back to a thought I had shared with DaveR at work.  We all have this fleeting gift called health and well-being and it lasts a few score of years and soon, too soon, things revolve around and leave us with a different reality.  Up until mere months ago I felt indestructible, powerful, able to move tall buildings.  Then I did my reality check.

This all came home to me as I watched remotely how my Mom-in-law went through the basic change from independent human being to needing something close to assisted living.  The message I’m left with is rather sublime.  Guard the things that are closest to you.

Take care of all the things you hold dear.  We all grow older.