I had recently visited an old age home and an orphanage and I had these tingling thoughts running into my mind. I couldn’t pin-point on exactly what these were. But I knew I need to notice and think. These were kept aside, for now.
Few days later, my mom celebrated her 70th birthday and I had spent the day with her doing things that she likes to do. Being a movie buff, she wanted to watch movies! We watched 102 Not out and Nude and Nude, back-to-back! Aah! What fun-filled day it was!
On that day, I had the same tingling thoughts in mind and this time I paid attention. It was a lesson. Spending time with children and elderly people makes us grow, in many terms. This is indeed a very simple lesson but an important one, especially in today’s world. We are living in a bizarre time. We have technology developing every millisecond to keep people connected yet the number of lonely and depressed people is increasing at almost the same speed.
I have spent many days and occasions with my parents, other elderly people and children but this sudden realization was a new relief. These people are so full of life! How wonderful it is to feel amazed at every new thing you see. My mother was so amused by the motion sensing water taps in the mall that she insisted on going to the washroom every other hour. She still makes me take her by the escalators and not the elevators, at least once during our visit to any mall, just so that she doesn’t go out of practice. And, I can’t describe the feeling of achievement that radiates from her face when she completes a ride on the escalators. Similarly, on the other day, the children at the orphanage were more than happy while making paintings on the walls of their classrooms. Really, that is all it takes for them and even us to be happy! Simple joys, excitement about tiny little things and fun things to do.
I am not saying that this could not get annoying after a while. Or that I didn’t get tired by their enthusiasm but didn’t our parents and grandparents put up with us when we were still trying to figure out the world around us when we were young? It must have taught them to be patient and positive and all that. Yes, I am giving some credit to us (us as kids) for them being so amazing!
So, need to learn to be patient? Want to hone your skills at convincing a stubborn mind? Want to excel at creative conversations? Need a different perspective of the world around us or on life? Or simply need to smile for no reason at all? Go spend some time with the oldies or the kiddos! They have so much to learn from!