Document 413

 

Guardian Angels

Do you know someone other than me who had been physically and mentally active every day of his or her life who has become limited in one or the other of those domains?

   I see neighbors who have arrived “there” but I do not know any of them well. The only two people who reached such a point in their life that I knew well were my father and my mother. My father reached that point a decade before his wife did, and she assumed the role of his guardian angel He was in his early 70s. He just sat at home in Seekonk in the Baker living room where her presence was enough for him.

   After he died, she lived alone and turned her attention to assembling and making available her Memoir masterpiece clipping, pasting, writing then having the time and solitude to make that possible.

   But she did have at least two guardian angels, both cousins of mine, Joyce and Donnie. Joyce was always just a telephone call away and she saw to that daily – her initiative. Donnie lived nearby so he was able to visit her and make physical changes in her living space that were always helpful.

   I write on this subject because I am feeling uplifted by a fine visit by my number one Swedish guardian angel, Ann from Styrsö She was extraordinarily helpful today in arranging for me to have a root-canal procedure at a time when she can be my ledsagare a person who accompanies another, perhaps just to be with but who can also be a person who accompanies as a helper.

   Ordinarily when she visits 3B, she takes me on promenade up to but not into my forest. We are updating on the 13th of April. Ann came with a special mission: She would reshape my hair. She had her special scissors, sat me down, and clipped away. The high standing hair is gone, I am restored. Love the sound of hair being clipped.

But that was only the beginning: She is my Trash Lady, a position that must be filled for every home-bound person like me. Hallway restored, Recycling bins filled. Then we took a walk to the mailbox where i put a letter to Santander Bank where not a one of the telephone contact people could help me restore my account. Long letter off to Santander in Pennsylvania.

Then we walked down part of allen and I moved fast two poles flying. Felt great.

Back inside she needed help editing a story about herself for her university, GU. Getting rid of words is a special skill. She got rid of many - enought? We'll see. Then we were going to attach her Word file to an email to a Lundgren at GU. Computer or software went into refusal mode but in the end using all the tricks known to me, off it went.

Sometimes just helping one another - each other - is the most satisfying thing two people can do. We did that. 

A few daus ago I wanted t take a walk. The photo shows why I could not. On April 2, we had our biggest 2024 snowstorm. Even with Ann’s help taking a walk was not on the agenda. This was also the day after another Guardian Angel, Julie, had walked from her temporary home through the forest with suitcase to 3B. Might have been difficult.

 

I  posted this at my blog as number one in a series of Guardian Angels.

I have been modifying this one and will do the same as a way of showing all the good things that happen to me here and around 3B.

•  Yesterday, April 12, quite by chance, I found this photograph showing the cover of a book that i had misplaced, a book about experiences shared by an 85 year old scholar Sven-Eric Liedman. I had bought the book and read about his experience with becoming older - Om åldrandet On Aging. I ordered a new copy. I want to take another look since I share with him some very positive views about the experience of aging while one's mind is still working quite well.
• Ann is on her way back to Styrsö, no fast bus today so she will be in the slow lane to Saltholmen and the ferry.
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