Aging with Humor and Love

Wednesdays continue to be my favorite day of the week.  It's the day I get to spend with the senior adult couple from church.  They've really transitioned from a senior adult couple from church to just two aging people that I love dearly.

Even though the wife is still in a care center, I did get to see her today.  She wasn't feeling well and I didn't get a chance to talk much to her.  But, she's been on my mind all day.

When I was helping pack the couple to move from their home to the apartment, I got to learn a lot about them and specifically the wife.

This woman is meticulous!  Her filing system was amazing.  Everything had specific places.  She has the organizational skills that most people only wish they had.  It's no surprise that she was the same with how she looked.

The thing that's been rolling around in my head today is something she said while we were packing.  She said if she doesn't feel good about the way she looks, she just doesn't feel good.

How true is that, especially for women?  Bad hair day, an outfit that doesn't feel right, running out of your favorite make-up.  It can all make for a bad day.  What I hadn't really thought about is that you don't have to be young to feel that way.  Our need to look ok, so that we feel ok stays with us.  I'm not talking about obsessing over what we look like, but merely caring about ourselves enough.

When I worked in a nursing home, I never understood why some of the ladies were so crabby about not having particular accessories or lipstick.  Now I know.  It's what made them feel ok, normal.   And when life is rocking all around you or everything is changing, I suppose it's the small things like make-up that you hang onto in hopes of maintaining a level of normal for yourself.

I don't want to forget to mention the time I spent with the husband.  My plan was to walk him from visiting his wife back to his apartment.  The sun was quickly sinking into the horizon before I could get him home.  Since his buggy doesn't have headlights, we had to call for a ride.

It was only a few weeks ago that we were going out for walks with the buggy so he could learn how to use it better.

As I watched him drive his buggy up the ramp and into the bus, I felt a bit overwhelmed.  Not in a bad way.  Walking away, I wondered if that was how a parent feels the first time they put their child on the bus to head to school.  It was definitely a "aww, he's growing up" moment for me.

He has learned how to run his buggy so well and has become more independent. 

I waited in the driveway for the bus to pull up and felt much the same way when he came back down the ramp.  It made me smile and was a little emotional to see him making progress in big ways. 

I continue to be incredibly thankful for the time I get to spend with these two.