Last post I discussed taking my aunt back to her old neighborhood. The thought was she would be happy to see some of the old stores and it would give her a special feeling of happiness. That turned out to be only partly true.
Before we get into that, I should explain this neighborhood. I used to do a radio show there many years ago. I would pick up my aunt before and we would leave her apartment to walk the unique shops. At that time there was an independent created newspaper handed out by hippies in dreadlocks. Now it is a glossy magazine called Shepherd Express.
We began by stopping by my aunt’s favorite Chinese restaurant. It soon became apparent that my aunt’s hearing was not what it used to be. I was hoping to reflect more with her and hear her thoughts on what she remembered. Instead, she seemed to exclude herself from most conversations. When we attempted to converse with her, most times her reply was a dismissive “oh yes. ” Even though it was abundantly clear she had not heard what we were discussing.
At the coffee shop, the music was a little too loud to allow much communication even though we were sitting right next to each other. It was also all of the walking she could handle for the day. Any hopes of reliving the actions of days gone by quickly faded.
After leaving my aunt that evening, it really hit me that the memory of exploring with my aunt would forever be that – a memory. There had been countless times both of us had talked about doing it, but as happens, life got in the way. Now, she was no longer physically capable of doing it.
This may seem like a melancholy post. In some ways it is, but it has a message. If there are things you want to experience, do them now! Do not let life get in the way. If there is conversations you want to have with loved ones, even if it is reminiscing about going into occult shops and seeing all the wild stuff they have, do it now. You never know what, or when, time will steal the opportunity from you.
SECRET 2 AN AMAZING LIFE 