They don't make them like that any more, but they should!

I want to talk about a friend of mine, so bear with me.

My former neighbour has lived in her house her entire life with her brother. She's a lovely outgoing old lady, but her brother had always paid the bills (she gave him the money, but she didn't have a credit card or cheque book), when their parents died, he dealt with the estate and he had a car, and she never learnt to drive. He organised the tradesmen and basically did it all.

He passed away last year, and for the first time in 89 years, she is living alone. She has managed astoundingly well, and has some very good neighbours who have helped her organise tradesmen, and set up bank accounts and a good friend helped her deal with the lawyers and will etc.

I like to visit once a week, or do some grocery shopping (as the 'heavy stuff' is difficult for her), but she has a good group of friends. We've started going to the free movies at the library together as an evening social outing, but I've even dropped her & picked her up when I haven't been able to stay and watch with her.

All these things are difficult in themselves, but when you imagine you've lived your whole life having never done them, it's mind boggling. She's a fairly chipper lady, and tends not to let it get her down, or at least not show too much.

The anniversary of his death was yesterday, and she'd made a plan to see a friend, as another friend had offered to drive her to the cemetery today. I rang in the morning, just to check the plan hadn't fallen through, and it had. Her friend had suffered a loss of her own during the night (we have all this to look forward to, my friends). So I popped around for a cup of tea in the sunshine.

She was a little upset but keep saying "I'm sorry, I'm in a bit of a muddle". That was all.

The thing of note in this tale, is she mentioned how she signed up for the council transport trip to Floriade. It's overnight, meals and transport included. I looked at the itinerary and it's busy but at a pace for those in wheelchairs to manage too. I mention the wheel chairs, as while she's on her feet, she's slow and needs to stop and rest from time to time due to issues with her legs. While we were talking about it, she mentioned she'd not been away by herself in well over twenty years.

This is what awed me. That she has the get up and go, or gumption to sign herself up to do a trip like this, by herself. It will be lovely to see all the flowers. There will hopefully be some fun lovely people for her to eat with. I hope she has a great time. I just can't imagine, at 90, having to suddenly face life alone for the first time ever, that she's so courageous and ready to throw herself into situations that would be out of a lot of people's comfort zone, regardless of age and physical issues.

I'm so proud of her, and she really is becoming a role model for me. I hope I'm still living large when I'm her age, no matter what my situation.

And I guess, that's really what a passion for life is all about. To keep on going when your world shifts monumentally on it's axis. By not just going through the motions but making new happy times, by finding enjoyment in the little joys the world can offer.