Pay Heed to Kids, Seniors

Someone was quoted as saying, “If you would be wise, then cultivate a relationship with children under six and seniors over 70.”

Well, I’ve done both and I must say I’ve learned a lot. Children are so frank and uninhibited, they just say whatever they think without dressing up the language or being subtle.

Seniors have much wisdom to impart, if they can remember these truisms. I find it embarrassing to begin telling something and then forgetting it, before I’ve finished. Often times, it comes back to me, but not always.

For years I looked forward to my 80th birthday because I’d heard that when a person reaches 80, no one expects anything from them. However, I find that people still expect me to get out of bed each morning, wash my face, brush my teeth and comb my hair. Quite often that is as far as I get before I must crash in my recliner for a nap.

In a sense seniors are like children, they don’t try to butter-up people and flatter them just to gain their favor. I would hope that when seniors have something unpleasant to say, they would at least say it kindly.

When my granddaughter Rachel was about five and came to visit us at Woodward, I was putting on my makeup one day and she asked what I was using. “This is Oil of Olay, Rachel.”

She stood back and examined me for a few seconds and then said, “But Mamaw, it’s supposed to make you beautiful.” How about that for being subtle?

One day I was at my daughter Gayle’s house and we were visiting. Several of her granddaughters were there and as Gayle was telling me something, she called me “Mother.”

Lauren who was about five at the time, looked at Gayle and said, “You called her Mother.”

“Yes, Lauren, she is my Mother. Didn’t you know that?”

Lauren looked at Gayle and then at me and replied, “She can’t be your Mother, you’re too old.”

After David had learned to talk, we had a problem with him interrupting adult conversations. One night we had a guest and as we sat at the table, David was telling us something.

Our guest, an elderly man, had a hearing problem and while David was speaking, this man began telling Ray something. David stopped talking and looked at the man and said, “Mr. Mac, Mr. Mac, I was talking first and you just cut right into me.”

One of the remarkable things regarding seniors is that their wisdom mostly comes from experience, so they know whereof they speak.

When my grandma told me some of the things regarding her growing up years, I sat with rapt attention. To me, her life had been so very different from mine. Her stepmother was not the kindest person in the world.

Grandma had to make most of her clothes at night after working in the field all day. She had to sew them by hand, while her step-sisters were allowed to use the sewing machine to make doll clothes.

Looking back, I have much for which to be thankful in my life.

7-16-2009
#443

Summer Labor Can Wilt You

How refreshing to awaken to the aroma of grass wet with drops from an evening rain. So unusual, especially in July when we are normally very dry and hot.

When July 4th has come and gone, I always feel like summer is at least half over. This does not mean that the heat index will automatically go down. However, the time before school begins again is peering through the curtains and before we know it, students will be loading up their supplies in backpacks and heading off to classes.

I wonder if other senior adults look back as I do and long for those lazy days of going barefoot, eating watermelon, and spending the afternoon in a pool? Those are some of my best childhood memories. Sitting on the old crank ice cream freezer was a chore we fought over, my sister, brother and I.

In my family we had certain responsibilities and these increased as we grew older, but the chores were fairly well equally divided so we did not feel that we were being put upon.

Mother decided early on that it was easier for her to do the cooking than for my sister or me to mess up the kitchen. We were assigned the duties of washing and drying the dishes after each meal.

I remember complaining about having to dry dishes at home, but often I went to our next-door neighbor’s and if she were doing dishes, I would pick up the dishtowel and begin drying her dishes. I still don’t understand why that did not seem to be a chore.

On really hot days, we girls did not stay out in the heat during the afternoons. The girls usually played jacks, or a board game such as checkers. Boys spent their time playing marbles, but were more likely to get out in the afternoon sun and play baseball, or kick ball.

Once the sun went down, we often times put an old quilt out on the lawn and lay on it watching stars twinkling in the sky. We enjoyed a game of Red Rover, Red Rover, or Hide ‘N Seek. Our parents did not have to worry about where we were because we were usually out in our own front yard.

During weeks when we spent time with our grandparents, we helped gather eggs, fed the chickens and put out water for them. I went to the garden with my grandma and helped her pull up onions, or gather leaf lettuce for our meal. We all loved wilted lettuce and Grandma made lots of that when we visited.

Once when my parents were here, Mother walked up to visit Mrs. Tripp. They went out into Mrs. Tripp’s garden and she gathered enough lettuce for Mother to bring home for our evening meal. Gayle started back home and Mother told her to go ahead and bring the lettuce and she would wilt it when she got here.

Upon her return, Mother saw the lettuce lying limp in the sink. When she questioned Gayle, the reply was, “Grandma, you said we would wilt it, so I put it in there and turned some hot water on it.”

Needless to say, it was wilted.

7-9-2009
#442