CONNIE ARBOLEDA
I was driving my helper’s son to one of our enclaves last week so he could get his second shot. Outside one of the homes was a really old couple, maybe in their late 70s or even 80s. They didn’t look like they belonged. Their clothes were faded, both were very thin and both had browned skin. Like they had just come from the province where they were used to long hours under the sun.
The man was sweeping leaves from around the house while the woman was picking up random trash from the street. There was something about their faces that caught my eye. The whole thing was only a few seconds but the word that came to me was “determined.” Like they were determined to be useful even if they were way past their prime. Like they were determined to not be a burden even if their every move was already belabored.
Waiting for my helper’s son to come out, I was in my car thinking about the old people among us. Most of the victims of Covid have been not just those with co-morbidities but also those who were very old. Like there is a global cleansing of people whose bodies have gone beyond their “best by” date.
What makes this heartbreaking is we are not just our bodies. Old people can teach us many things even without saying or doing anything. All we need to do is notice.
During the 3 years that mommy was bedridden and could not even talk, she taught us things that we could not grasp while she was still healthy. As we took care of her, as we held her hand, as we prayed with her and as we contemplated her past and present life, my siblings and I learned what it meant to have gratitude, compassion, appreciation, unconditional love and the hardest of them all, forgiveness. Not just towards Mommy but also towards each other. I hope we too will have our chance to still teach the younger when it is our turn to reach our expiration dates.
Thank you Connie for sharing. Savoring moments with parents and siblings are so priceless! Life is short and precious❤️
Thank you Connie… with your nod, I shared this story in my fb wall too without your name… before this publication from whitebutterfly.ph This is so heartwarming and as a senior citizen myself, somehow I got that fear of no longer being noticed in the future. This is also a great reminder for me and my siblings to be more together even just virtually, more often now more than ever.
Thank you so much for this article. Many of us including myself couldn’t find time to spend with my mother . Then covid came and though I had the time now to go visit more often I found myself lockdown at home being a senior myself. I felt so guilty when my mom died and had only the past days to spend with her. Yes we should instill in the minds of our youth to first and foremost net to neglect the old people.
Through the potent silence of that “determined” old couple on the street, and of your beloved mother breathing immeasurable wordless lessons to her children as she lay in bed (which you so poignantly describe), you move us with the invitation:” All we need to do is notice.”
Indeed, your eyes look but it is your heart that sees. In this perspective, the elderly remain precious and vibrant young beacons of God’s love for each one of us.
Thank you for your reflection, Connie. I hope it reaches readers of all ages!
This is beautiful, haunting, moving. The simplicity is piercing. And it is just so real. Thank you for this much-needed reminder, Con.
Very touching Sis Connie. I hope and pray that I could show more of my love to my mom while she still alive. Be determined in all I will do esp to my children. With God, everything will go well.
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