My next door neighbor will turn 90 next week, and his son and daughter have no idea what a treasure he is.
If I had my daddy alive, I would move heaven and earth to keep him near me, regardless of the inconvenience of his illness or disability.
So old Dick Next Door will get put in an assisted living facility--which I don't object to, as it's my preference when the day comes--but in a town where he has no kin and neither of his kids is willing to bring him to their town so they can be close to him. He's likely to have a limb amputated for poor circulation, but their European Vacations must continue as scheduled.
So take care of your old people while you have them. They are precious.
Just sayin.
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| Jimmy Dee Brown 1942 - 2009 |
Aw, bless his heart! I agree with you 100%! I would do anything to have my Mama & Daddy back. The world is a different place when you lose your parents. Wishing the best for your neighbor!
ReplyDeleteI find myself drawn more and more toward the elderly; perhaps because I am getting there, but maybe more because I realize what, as you say, "treasures" they are. They have stories to tell that will so soon be gone. We all could learn so much if we would only listen. Perhaps, "the children" just haven't taken time to think that they will soon be there too... Your dad was a handsome guy. You do favor him a great deal!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mary. He was not exactly at what he called his "Fighting Weight" in that photo, it was another few months from then we lost him to pancreatic cancer. He was ornery, and a traveler with a wandering spirit, so I know where I get it from. :~)
DeleteI think this is a problem so many older people face. It is scary and hard for someone facing ( no help ) and not being able to take care of yourself. Some old people are lucky, as a child will take care of them in their own home, and the parent can relax and not worry about being alone, food, doctors visits or not be able to enjoy going places, seeing their relatives. I would not want to have it on my conscience that I didn't take care of my mother. My daddy died, but we did our best to take care of him and he moved in with us. You might not be perfect, but just pushing off a parent into a nursing home when you could take care of them is bad.
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