I was just doing a procedure for an elderly man, and I was suddenly reminded of my grandfather. Granddad was blind for most of the time I knew him, yet, he still lived a pretty good life in his last decades. My granddad lived to 96. He was blind for at least 15 years. What was awesome about him was, how stubbornly independent he remained despite being blind, lol.
He didn't use his walking stick, and preferred to navigate around his house from memory. Obviously, he could no longer cook over a gas stove (we did the cooking for him), but he often said, "Just leave a bag of fresh bread and a large jar of peanut butter and I will be fine for the rest of the day." And so he did. I even remember when I was a little boy, when granddad was stronger, (already blind), he would sometimes bring me a peanut butter sandwich.
He had got himself a landline telephone with large printed numbers, and he would use it to call us whenever he needed something. He had carefully set-up a bucket in the bathroom for him to sit on, and he bathed himself. He could judge how high his hair level was, and he would tell us when it was time for his haircut, etc. I never saw my grandfather unkempt, even if he was 96! Can you believe that? a 96 y/o blind man, still grooming himself tidily.
Whilst, many people suffer from mental decline in their final years, my granddad, thankfully, did not. He occupied himself listening to his radio, or sitting on his porch and talking to the neighbours. When we came to visit, I used to sit and listen to him tell stories of the various odd jobs he did.Sometimes when we came to visit, he would already be on his porch talking to someone.
My favourite story, was how he escaped from a capsized boat by swimming back to shore !
What eventually ended granddad, was a fall in his house, and the hip fracture he got from the fall. But to be fair, at 96, even people who can see, still fall in their house. Anyways. He had the surgery. We spoke with him after the hip surgery, and then a few days after, he went off in his sleep. Most likely it was a clot.
The doctor warned us that at his age, there was a high chance for post-op complications. But granddad, being granddad, wanted to walk.
In retrospect, I think it was as good an end as one could hope for. The way I see it, since Granddad, died in his post-op recovery, he never really lost his independence, and I think that's just how he would have liked it.
My Granddad was awesome. Of all the things that could happen in old age, he made blindness look like just a walk in the park.
She was a child of the Depression, grew up in Germany during WWII. Lived more life than I would ever. She was in a children’s camp in Czechoslovakia when the children were evacuated from her city. She apprenticed as a bookkeeper in Germany and worked full time at the bank in her neighborhood during the war. One day she came home from work to find the house next door flattened by bombs. At age 14 she worked at a farm in Germany alongside prisoners of war.
As a child she taught me to knit and how to make a bed so that a quarter could bounce off it. She taught me the value of money, how to be frugal and live within my means. When my friend went away one summer she gave me her favorite book Gone With The Wind to read. It was magical.
It was not easy being her daughter but she had good qualities too.
We were not very close. And, unfortunately, I didn't get time to build a closer relationship with her, which in hindsight I wish I would have done.
She was extremely smart, highly educated, very pretty, outgoing, and popular.
She lived adventurously and made the most of her 62 years.
She never really wanted to be a mother, it was just something women were expected to do. I was her only child, and she did her best. She was strong, self-sufficient, and independent. I learned from her to be a strong and independent woman. She wasn't warm and fuzzy as a mother, but she taught me invaluable life skills. I learned during her celebration of life that she touched so many people who admired her and truly missed her. It is too bad she didn't get more time on this earth to touch even more people with her tenacious spirit!
Mom....just a hard working, gracious lady who grew up during the Great Depression and WWII.
She was always very careful in caring for her shoes because as a child you got in big trouble during WWII if you damaged your shoes or lost a shoe due to rationing of shoes.
Could we move this question to discussions?
Hi ExVeeMon. Good to see you again.
I had both in-laws pass in the last couple of years. My FIL was dedicated to his fitness. Even into his 80s he would get on the exercise bike and go for 45 minutes. He could be ornery at times but was mostly easy-going. He had a funny sense of humor and was well-liked as a medical professional. He grew up in poverty and, perhaps as a result of that, treated his patients fairly with regards to the financials, not trying to extract every last dime. At the nursing home where he went one of the young aides liked to go and just talk with him.
Both in-laws had a real artist’s eye and took wonderful photographs. When we took slides in for digitalization, the guy at the camera shop said it was a real treat to work with the images, as compared to what they would usually see.
My MIL liked nothing better than to see people’s eyes light up when she gave them an extra big tip, or paid for a rental car or plane ticket during a time of need. She had a real drive to connect with people from other cultures and countries. She inspired others to do the same, and sent one young man through college, unbeknownst to her husband. She loved nature and politics and was a big reader. She battled depression her whole life, but in the end, she still wasn’t ready to go. Still hanging on. She was a fighter.