The sodas – an understanding of my Grandmother

I now understand something about one of my grandmothers, years after her death.

She lived alone for a while, but she had this habit of buying sodas every week for the young people who lived in the neighbourhood. They knew this and would often come and beg her for the sodas. We would discourage her from doing this. We didn’t think it was the safest practice and repeatedly asked her to stop. Sometimes she herself would complain about the young folk who came by, but she continued to buy the sodas week after week, until she fell ill and had to move away.

I was listening to an excerpt of the book “The Sky Gets Dark Slowly”. It speaks of how ill prepared we are to the process of growing old. It suggests we learn to prepare for the inevitable loneliness, when the world of people we know and who knows us, gradually declines. My grandmother must have had a sense of the loneliness to come. Although she could have spent more time with her children, it meant leaving her home and staying in their space. So, she made a choice to remain in her familiar surroundings, even if it meant being alone at times. These young people, coming by for sodas, must have kept some of the solitude at bay. They provided entertainment and conversation for her. I now understand this and can appreciate the choices she made.

Be conscious of the seniors in your community. Take the time to say hello and have a short conversation with them. It may help them keep the loneliness at bay. The time may also come for us when we ourselves crave the same. Thanks Gran for showing me this lesson.