Sunday, February 28, 2010

Sunday Memories: Neither Snow nor Rain nor Heat nor Gloom of Night ...Until Suddenly...


None of us really understood that things were changing for Florence.   She seemed as she always had been.

Teaching cooking walking arguing fuming eating investigating practicing devouring life intrepidly…sallying forth into the world as the force of nature that she was.

The rare cracks were easy to ignore.  More often than not they looked like the mishaps and mistakes we all make.

Until suddenly…

This was the first crack I wanted to ignore.

On the corner of 6th Street and Avenue A.  Heading home after teaching a piano student.  Between her and the curb a pile of snow dumped high from the recent storm.

Suddenly she couldn't traverse it. Suddenly she didn't know what to do.

Suddenly she was old.

And then suddenly some young men came up behind her, picked her up, carried her over the mound and gently placed her on solid sidewalk before vanishing into the crowd.

Telling me this on the phone after, she laughed and laughed and laughed about it because the joy of that sudden flight erased the sudden reality she could not longer climb her own mountains.

7 comments:

Cro Magnon said...

Well done those guys. Chivalry is not quite dead.

Regards, Cro.

c.o. moed said...

yes indeed! and thank you for your visit. The description of your life in your blog is a fantasy of mine - along with being 4 inches taller, 30 pounds thinner and a super model. Truly enjoyed the visit and will link.

Laura Goggin Photography said...

Reminds me of my step-father and, in turn, of his mother. There are those moments when you know a line has been crossed and there's no going back.

Lisa said...

Well written, very nice post.

Lisa

c.o. moed said...

Thank you Lisa, and yes Goggla, you're so right. that line. I just kept moving it because I couldn't believe it had been crossed. Took a long time and massive changes and even then I kept thinking something would reverse.

cityofstrangers said...

CO - Nice post. Thankfully my own mother, after a tough life and 72 years, is still going strong, but I'm waiting for that line to be crossed. I've seen it with other people - that line that seems inocuous at the time, but in retrospect you realize was important.

T.

Melanie said...

My Grandmother was about 4 feet 9 inches tall and every time she would board the bus someone would lift her up to the first step--this was way back in the day before the new buses with their hydraulic lifts. She would get around--if not by bus then by walking.