Hidden Treasures in Plain Sight
As I stand here patiently waiting by her bedside, I watch for ‘the sign’. It will come. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but it always does by the time my job is done. At first I didn’t know what it was or what it meant; but now I am a bit older and the fragility of life, health and merely being human is now nipping at my heels.
I remember the first time it happened. Her name was Mrs. Mary McConnaughey. She had been a prominent citizen in that small town in her younger days. By the time I met her, however, she was reduced to living in nightgowns, puddings for breakfast, lunch and dinner and enema regimens. For a while she pretended not to know anything or anyone – especially the myriad of friends and family – mainly family - that came to call on Sundays.
After a few weeks of constant time spent together, however, I began to catch on and she began to trust me. I enjoyed those long talks in the middle of the night when she would describe her former life and make fun of the wealthy people she had known and the skeletons in their closets behind the facades she had been privy to. She was as brilliant as any scholar I’d ever encountered and her sense of humor, though dry, was exquisite. Why, I wondered, did old age have to be so harsh?! The light behind those eyes, behind the wrinkled face and wispy hair was so beautiful to me. I couldn’t understand for the longest time why she would want to hide so; but eventually I realized it was because she was simply tired and bored with her life and everyone in it.
Later, when the time came for me to return to college, I knew I would never see her again, but that my perception had been transformed in such a way that I would never be the same. I have had similar experiences over the years, but none have been so dear to my heart. There is always the sign of life in an old, withered shell if I look for it. It’s like finding a hidden treasure on the beach.
I have come to understand Mrs. McConnaughey a little better. Maybe some of her reticence came from the knowledge that our society has a hard time looking beyond the outward appearances; is too fast-paced to sit down for a leisurely stroll down memory lane, or to soak up some of the wisdom of those who have gone before. Almost every magazine, television commercial, sitcom and movie portrays the young, perfect specimens of health. Everything is about fast-food, fast-living and instant gratification. We have gone from extended families to nuclear units and the idea of someone taking care of their parents has given way to nursing homes and/or extended care facilities where caring is just another line on an itemized bill.
The saddest aspect of all of this to me, is the wealth of information that we are and our children are missing. The wisdom, the history and the experiences that will be forever lost. That’s why it’s so important to me to look beyond the drool on the chin, the untamed hair and the seeming incomprehensibility. There has always been a treasure inside, just waiting to be opened. One that’s priceless, ageless and timeless.
I remember the first time it happened. Her name was Mrs. Mary McConnaughey. She had been a prominent citizen in that small town in her younger days. By the time I met her, however, she was reduced to living in nightgowns, puddings for breakfast, lunch and dinner and enema regimens. For a while she pretended not to know anything or anyone – especially the myriad of friends and family – mainly family - that came to call on Sundays.
After a few weeks of constant time spent together, however, I began to catch on and she began to trust me. I enjoyed those long talks in the middle of the night when she would describe her former life and make fun of the wealthy people she had known and the skeletons in their closets behind the facades she had been privy to. She was as brilliant as any scholar I’d ever encountered and her sense of humor, though dry, was exquisite. Why, I wondered, did old age have to be so harsh?! The light behind those eyes, behind the wrinkled face and wispy hair was so beautiful to me. I couldn’t understand for the longest time why she would want to hide so; but eventually I realized it was because she was simply tired and bored with her life and everyone in it.
Later, when the time came for me to return to college, I knew I would never see her again, but that my perception had been transformed in such a way that I would never be the same. I have had similar experiences over the years, but none have been so dear to my heart. There is always the sign of life in an old, withered shell if I look for it. It’s like finding a hidden treasure on the beach.
I have come to understand Mrs. McConnaughey a little better. Maybe some of her reticence came from the knowledge that our society has a hard time looking beyond the outward appearances; is too fast-paced to sit down for a leisurely stroll down memory lane, or to soak up some of the wisdom of those who have gone before. Almost every magazine, television commercial, sitcom and movie portrays the young, perfect specimens of health. Everything is about fast-food, fast-living and instant gratification. We have gone from extended families to nuclear units and the idea of someone taking care of their parents has given way to nursing homes and/or extended care facilities where caring is just another line on an itemized bill.
The saddest aspect of all of this to me, is the wealth of information that we are and our children are missing. The wisdom, the history and the experiences that will be forever lost. That’s why it’s so important to me to look beyond the drool on the chin, the untamed hair and the seeming incomprehensibility. There has always been a treasure inside, just waiting to be opened. One that’s priceless, ageless and timeless.
posted by Brooke Lee at 3/26/2006 01:44:00 AM
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