It is worth it!

You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:32

It might sound silly to some of you, funny to others.

My grandma is more than 80 years old. She lost her husband 3 years ago. Though she has 9 children, and she lives with her youngest son, all her children visit her whenever they can. As I wrote yesterday, my mom and sister visited with her for a few days and my grandma proves the already known facts. :)

She behaves like a small kid who says things over and over again. People who are not mature enough may not even listen to her, like my sister. I would like to narrate to you a few conversations of my grandma with my sister.

Grandma:  How is Jansi doing?

My sister:  She is fine granny.

Grandma:  Does she speak to you often?

My sister:  Oh yes. She calls us every day.

Grandma: I want to see her very badly.

Within a minute, she repeats the same questions again, and she repeats it several times on a single day. :)

When I called her for a few minutes, she repeatedly told me that she wanted to speak to me and see me. She wanted me to eat well and stay healthy. To be honest, I was never bored with her.

Also, she forgets things very easily.

My Aunt visited my grandma with her little son, while my sister was there. Right after my aunt left for her house, my grandma started telling my sister, “It has been a long time since I have seen your Aunt and her son. I would love to see them. Will you please call them to come here for a visit?” :)

Sometimes she behaves quite silly.

They lit many candles where we buried our grandpa in remembrance of the third anniversary of his death. After a while the candles burnt out, and were not seen anymore. My Grandma complained to my sister that someone had stolen those candles. :)

When my sister paid no attention to what grandma said, grandma told my mom, “I love Jansi. She patiently answers all my questions. This little one doesn’t even pay attention to me, or she pretends that she doesn’t hear me.” I mention this not to exhort myself, but to tell you how our actions impact our elders.

Sometimes she remembers bitter things.

She can tell us those who spoke badly of her and who stole things from her house many decades ago correctly.

This is a Second childishness! Nothing more or less! Well, now, what do we get from the above?

This moment may come in our lives too. When we reach this last stage, we may remember certain things and forget the rest. We may irritate others with repeated questions. We may remember some good things and some bitter things about others. Though my grandma doesn’t remember everything about me, she remembers the good times I had with her. I can proudly say that I am the only grandchild of hers who always wanted to spend my entire vacation with her in her village. Surely she remembers it. I am glad about it. Also she remembers some bitter things that happened to her when she was young. Some of these stay in her heart after all these years. 

Dear friends, please make sure you leave good traces in people’s lives. You can create a soothing feeling to someone as they age. The news that I heard from one of my friends yesterday still makes me cry. That is a different story. The time we have with others is really short. :( We must utilize this short time in loving them, showing extra kindness, making an impact in their lives which they can remember throughout their lives. It’s worth it!!! It brings joy to the lonely hearts!

Be a blessing to others and stay blessed!