As the sounds of Christmas music echo throughout city, she gingerly takes his arm to help him negotiate up and down each curb while crossing the busy streets. He pushes a shopping cart loaded with most of their scant belongings while she struggles to carry the remainder of their worldly goods in worn and faded shopping bags.
Once, they had a home and children with the means of support that rewarded their family with the comforts and necessities of life—the old man had worked hard all his life for his family! But since they have grown old, their lives have changed dramatically--they no longer have a home nor do they have the means to offer themselves the provisions of a normal life!
They now walk the empty streets, holding hands, remembering and reliving the past as they silently pilfer through the trash bins looking for the slightest item of worth that can be redeemed for cash or bartered for some other purpose!
Each night, while lying in each others arms, the old man tells her that he needs to find some work where he can buy medicine for the persistent cough and congestion that has plagued her for months. The old woman knows that he means well, but knows he would not be able to work even a full day because of his own poor health! She smiles to herself and nestles her head deeper into his frail chest while feeling the comfort of his intentions and the undying love that he has shown her for so many years.
During the day, they sit ragged and hungry with shallow cheeks and glazed eyes ignoring the stares of people passing them by, unable to fully comprehend the fateful events which took place that forced them into a world of unwarranted indignity and poverty. The old man and old woman are acutely aware and feel the daily pain and suffering of their ordeal!
Unknowingly some people pass them by, scoff and say, “This is the life they have chosen--let them suffer for their choices!” Others might avoid eye contact and look away to ignore the apparent humiliation and suffering of this old man and old woman as if it did not exist! The old man and the old woman did not choose to exist in this manner and pray daily that this living nightmare is only a dream from which they may awaken at any moment!
They sacrificed much and had attempted to rear their children with old fashion virtues that would hopefully insure them and their off-spring an improved life and future! Unwittingly, their children thought they knew of a better way and ignored these valuable principles and became members of the “Me Generation!” The old man and the old woman were ignored by their families for whom they would have once sacrificed their lives for and eventually fell victims to wide-spread political corruption and abuse!
One December evening, the old man and the old woman sought shelter for an early retirement as the nights damp weather had become colder making her cough and congestion more relentless. They eventually found refuge in an open park picnic shelter near downtown. As he had done so many times, the old man prepared their bed for the night. He unfolded a plastic tarp for them to sleep on and lined their worn coats with newspapers for added insulation from the unsavory weather conditions. When darkness set in, the old woman’s cough and congestion seemed to become more severe. The old man appeared to be worried and motioned for his beloved wife to lie down and begin her rest for the evening. He lay down beside her and pulled their thin blankets up over them to help ward off the inclement weather for the night.
As he held her in his arms to give her additional warmth, the old man reiterated that he would again look for some meaningful work tomorrow at first light! The old woman sighed and pulled closer to her husband of fifty years knowing that he meant well but at seventy-four years of age and being ill, the chances were few and far between of him finding any work in this economy! She loved him dearly and hugged him tighter, knowing in her heart that she would not trade her life with this old man for another—she continued coughing and wheezing and eventually fell asleep!
During the night, the old man was awakened by the cold rain being blown into the open shelter sides by the wind. Sensing that something was amiss and with a feeling of dread, he touched his beloved wife’s face to find that her skin was very cold and she was not breathing! With tears streaming down his face, he hugged her tighter and sobbed openly. With no resolve, the old man covered up the old woman for the last time and lay back down beside her still holding her in his frail arms as he thought to himself, “in the cold, cold gray days of December, I miss you more, even now”—then he slept!
The next morning, the police were summoned by a jogger to come to the park. There, they found the old man and the old woman in an eternal embrace that seemed to signify their many years of love and trust in one another---both were deceased! The old woman had apparently died from pneumonia---the old man had died from a broken heart!
Once again, their family and friends did not have time for them in death just as they did not have time for them in life! The old man and old woman were part of the “We Generation” and had learned early in their lives to rely on one another to overcome life’s numerous challenges! They were simply the victims of family neglect and abuse—sometimes the forgotten souls of our society! But most of all, they were members of the “Greatest Generation” and are human souls loved and cherished dearly by a loving God!
by: W.W. Watkins
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