61.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Life Lessons, From Grandma
Those places are freakin’ depressing.
Nursing homes, assisted living residences, hospitals, rehab facilities…
They really are freakin’ depressing.
I’ve spent quite a bit of time in all of those places over the last few years, especially the last year, since my grandmother is getting older and hasn’t been so well for a while now.
She’s been in and out of all of those types of places for a few years and, well, it hasn’t been easy. She’s got a handful of issues to contend with, none of which really are “small” things.
My mother and I visit her a few times a week and see how she’s doing and chat with her and deal with anything that we may need to address. Some days are certainly better than others. I’ve learned to expect the worst, and be grateful for the good days and appreciate them.
Appreciate the good days… Hmmm…
Yeah, I’ve learned to appreciate the good days with my grandmother. But that’s not the only thing she’s taught me of late, whether she realizes it or not.
As I said, the places she’s been in lately, those nursing homes and hospitals, etc., have been depressing. And to be fair, that’s just the inherent nature of those types of places, all of them. But, let’s be honest… by now you surely realize that the places themselves aren’t the only depressing element in play here.
Of course, it’s also depressing and very difficult to see my grandmother this way. She was a very strong woman who was successful in her career (which she started a bit further into her life than most people, after my grandfather passed away suddenly, and with no prior experience). And, oh yeah, she survived the Holocaust (my great-grandmother was luckily able to get herself and my grandmother out of Vienna and make it to the United States).
That has gotten me thinking… about life, about death, about how to view things. As much of a cliché as it is, life is short (there’s a reason that the things that are clichés, are clichés, after all). And we should make the most out of the opportunity while we’re here.
