GRANDPA IN THE RETIREMENT HOME

GRANDPA IN THE RETIREMENT HOME

Sure hope nobody comes to see me today.

I like to be by myself on Sunday.

If Marie was here, we'd be off to

Ashland or Wooster for a bargain chicken

dinner in Amish country. Then I'd sit

in Kmart's parkin' lot an hour

snoozin', while she checked out the

blue light specials. Tonight, We'd be

lookin' at travel magazines and

talkin' about goin' to Maine someday

so she could get her fill of lobster.

We always figured there would be time

for us after the boy grew up. Then

the grandsons came. And there were

always bills and sickness and somebody

needin' something. Never did take our

trip, but we had our ride every

Sunday. After awhile we stopped talkin'

about Maine.

Everything went bad for me after

Marie died Thanksgiving of '86. My

sight's just about gone, my blood

pressure's high, and my ticker don't

work right. I made it pretty good

till last fall when I took a spill in

the bathtub, and my boy said I needed

somebody to watch me all the time.

Before I knew what has happenin', I

ended up here in the home.

I'm not much for parties and trips to

concerts and stuff like some folks

here, so I mostly eat and sleep. It

ain't too bad, but I miss my home and

doin' things for myself. I'm luckier

than most of these guys�"my mind's good.

Take Joe, carrying baseball tropies

around like they're babies and mumblin'

about pitchin' for some big team in the

40's. And Wendell�"countin' cars in the

parkin' lot hour after hour.

When my boy comes tomorrow, I'm gonna

tell him again I wanna go home. He'll

say wait a while longer like he always

does, but it's worth a try. I'm just

a burden to the family. Pretty soon

my number'll be called and I can be

with Marie again. I gotta get one of

the gals here to shave me and help me

find the right clothes to wear, in case

he takes me for a fish dinner.

Reviews

[Fire Mage Andrea]

Seen through the grandfather's eyes. In some respects he wishes he was out of the home, and in others he counts himself luckier than some of the other residents there.
Maybe you could do another one of these, but through his son's eyes