During my early shifts of work, an old woman was often seen inside the shopping mall that I used to walk through on the way to my workplace. They used be early mornings of chilly winter in England and time would be barely 6 or 7am. No matter how much I cared, I would always be late to leave my place. I used to walk briskly, cursing myself for not using the blow drier as cold wind ran through my yet wet hair or, for barely looking at mirror. I eventually used to slow down at her very sight.
But she was never late. Hardly anyone inside the mall at the early hours of the day, she used to be well dressed, hair neatly combed shopping bag on her lap almost everyone in my team had noticed her sitting on the same bench. She probably used to wait for shops to open. Someone amongst us had also seen her getting into the shop when the shutter was barely opened, she bent below the shutter and walked inside. Was she shopping freak like those teenagers?
But I had often seen her looking at distant spot sitting on the same bench. She was alone probably. What must be going into her mind? Why would she take efforts to step out of home in the early hours of December? I never saw her speaking to any other person but she used to smile if our eyes met. I still haven't forgotten.
I often wonder what goes into the minds of old people when you see them sitting in the park or at seashore looking at some distant spot.. they don't speak much. Well, you sometimes see a group cheerful old youngsters but that sight is not so common. My grandmother used to sit in her chair watching the traffic on the roads for hours. People rushing to their work, hardly anyone noticed her ever.. probably. What did she find so entertaining looking at people?
Probably they are not really watching the things that we see. They might be spending time in analyzing their past like a movie. Or thinking how things around their own small world changed over the years. They pick up things at their own pace, slowly, but they do. My grandmother was introduced to telephone very late in her life, but now, in her 70's she has learnt to use mobile phones, often telling me that my voice is feeble and she would go close to window (for signal to catch) I found it funny but interesting when she talks about internet, chat that she has never used, but she tries to keep her pace in our world, taking efforts not to sound alien to my life.
Have you seen those old couples walking together on the road? They can not keep pace with each other, man would walk fast, woman still behind. But the man would stop at some distance waiting for his woman to catch up. He would soon loose his patience and story would repeat. Life seems difficult for them, but but at times hilarious too! They have probably learnt to live with each other over the years. Perspective matters.
I read this joke sometime back - An old fellow fell in love with a lady. He got down on his knees and told her there were two things he would like to ask her.
She replied, "OK."
He said, "Will you marry me?"
She replied, "Yes," then asked what his second question was.
He replied, "Will you help me up? ;-)
