Three Long-time Older Friends Taking Their Daily Walk Holding Hands, One with a Cane, Their Usual Fourth Companion I Had Passed Earlier, as She Hurried Along the Sidewalk to Get to Church on Time

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One Saturday while on a morning walk, I saw up ahead an older couple with an older friend who I know from my walks. In my mind I affectionally call all of them “the old dears”.  All three were holding hands, one also walking with a cane, moving along on their morning walk.  Their usual fourth companion on their walks I had seen earlier as she hurried along the sidewalk towards me and the Catholic church I had just passed. As she came near, I looked at my watch and called out, “Already three minutes late for mass.” She then stopped beside me, and being out of breath, she smiled as best she could as she straightened and smoothed the front of her dress and then again hurried on still at least a minute away from the church.

This was now the fourth time I have encountered and paused to talk to these neighbors on a Saturday. This Saturday, when I first saw the three after I passed their friend, they were a block away and more, and I hurried my steps, knowing that I would soon come upon them. When I neared them, but not right on top of them, for I did not want to startle them, I said, “Good morning”. They all stopped in unison and turned and smiled at me and said “Hello” with a pleasant tone of warmth within their voices.

We talked for a while – I love their bright clear voices and their various accents – and they are always so enthused to see me and gracious in their speech towards me. I pulled out my phone and showed them a photo of our new great-grandson and they were so excited and spoke enthusiastically of their own families with one stating that her grandfather had lived to be a hundred.

I told them the baby in the photo resembled his mother in his smile and eyes and they all wanted to see the photo closely – I really appreciate how we can have photos on our phone and are able to now show them to others on a moment’s notice – and I told them he is just six weeks old, but his parents have already sent us 900 photos on a shared photo folder.

And one asked if he was six months old and I said no, six weeks – I try to speak a little slower and clearer as I know to them I also have an accent – and they all said “Ohh…”.  I then showed them another photo of my granddaughter with the baby, and one asked a little puzzled if this was my daughter, and I said no and one of them also spoke up saying, no, that this was my granddaughter and the baby was my great-grandson. And she looked at me closely for a moment and asked how old I was, and I told her – but not you, my cherished readers – and she looked kindly at me for another moment – as she always does – and she then nodded her head as now it all seemed to make sense to her.

It was then time for me to head home and for them to continue on their way home, for at the corner of the street, I would turn left to head for my home, and they would turn right to continue around the big block to eventually reach their homes. As we neared the corner, I asked them if I could take a photo of them from the back. I told them that I was a writer and that I wanted a photo of them for a post that I wanted to write about them for my website on how sometimes we meet each other on our Saturday walks.

They said yes and they took a few steps forward, and they then turned their heads to look back at me and smile – I should have taken that photo just for myself – but I said no, please just walk with your backs to me for a few steps for the photo for my post. They then all laughed and turned to have their backs towards me, and relaxed and again together naturally as friends, they took some steps away from me.

I took the photo, and they then stopped and one of the dears asked to see the photo of themselves that I had just taken. I pulled up the photo and I showed it to her and then all three wanted to see it. It was a “live” photo, so they saw themselves walking a few steps and all three of them thought that was funny and nice and they laughed together as if they had never seen that type of a photo. And I was surprised but happy because I had managed to give them something they had never seen before which delighted them and made them laugh. It was very nice watching all three laugh and enjoy the photo because it was something good that I didn’t know I could do for them, and it made them happy.

When we got to the corner, I pointed the way to the left where I was going to go and then I said, “My name is Chris” because I did not remember ever telling them my name. And they all said “Chris” in unison in a happy way, as if it also delighted them, as if it was a way to together remember my name.

I was not quite near the center of the sidewalk sloping down to the crosswalk and I took a step backwards before I was going to turn and the man said with concern to be careful. I stopped and answered that I usually was more careful and that I had learned never to take more than one step backwards because, yes, I knew that was dangerous – by experience – and they all then said goodbye and turned right and resumed their walk around the block.

I walked home, heated my coffee, sat down and wrote with pen upon paper this posting so that I would not forget all the details. I had told them I would show it to them when I published it on my website. I think they will also enjoy seeing their photo in the posting, and that will make them happy again.

And as I wrote, I realized that it was me who had received the greater blessing, for how often do we have the opportunity to make a group of seniors – old dears – happy and make them laugh and give them something to talk about and look forward to?  Old dears we just somehow were given the opportunity to meet on an early morning Saturday walk.

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Moments of Seeing & Occasional Pieces – Writing In The Shade Of Trees

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From the Lips & Voices of Babes, the Young, those Older, Who Long to be Touched by Listening Ears & to Touch Others by Being Heard