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funsway Inner circle old things in new ways - new things in old ways 9982 Posts |
You can decide if it is about magic or not ...
More than Able I’ve learned that music can paint a picture as vivid as a photograph, that dancers can bring fantasy to life, and a sculptor can let you see the girl inside an aging crone. I would never have believed that watching a person walk at sunrise could do all of this – and more. His name is Able Walker – a coincidence or touch of divine mirth – choose one. His grandson’s name is even more prophetic but doesn’t need be known – only that he ambles behind Able a pace or two, and that I have been allowed to join him at dawn. He appreciates my company it seems for walking behind his grandpa is a very lonely place to be. Able is a bit crazy, you see – and doesn’t even know we are there. This grandson – I’ll call him Joe – has told me something of their home, but I’d never intrude. During the day and evening Able is a perfect guest – eats whatever is placed before him, reads books in silence and enjoys naps in the sunlight with music always on. He goes to bed exactly at 9:20 and gets up at 5:30 following only some internal clock – just as he did while working at the mill for more than forty years. Joe and his wife moved in with Able after Sara passed on twelve years ago -- easiest care giver task in the world, I guess. Except that Grandpa hasn’t said a word since or even nodded hello. Not sad though – Able is always smiling. Of course the doctors can’t say what’s wrong other than “atypical dementia” – though in this crazy world maybe he’s the sanest one of all. You see, he talks to Sara all the time. Each morning he dresses appropriate for the weather and leaves the house at 6 AM, and Joe has to go along – or tie the old man to a chair. He never knows what route Able will take, though five repeated treks seem more likely than most, and I can usually find them when I can get out for a stroll. It’s certainly good exercise for a man of 94 – and me too – though Grandpa walks further than we do actually. Sometimes he walks in circles and zig-zags back and forth, or walks backwards for a spell. His hands are always in motion – pointing at flowers or a dashing cat or interesting cloud. Well, sometimes his right hand is in his coat pocket – holding hers, you know. Yup, Sara is right there with him – walking slow and steady as he tells her about the day. At first I thought he was acting out a fantasy with random games of show and tell. I asked Joe but he told me to just watch. We two can talk – wouldn’t matter to Able, but I came to learn about Sara just by watching Able accompany her along the way. This is what I know – Sara is five foot two or so and a trifle plump. She favors her right leg but must have been a dancer once. She likes to walk barefoot in the grass and doesn’t mind getting her hair wet, and never misses a chance to preen herself in any reflecting pool. Sara likes pansies more than roses and cherishes Dogwood Trees, but always prays before a Hawthorne Tree and strides a bit faster past a church. If the black clouds have a silver edge and beams of God-shine finger through she dashes into the road to step in puddles, and likes to jump on manhole covers – but only if Able holds her hand. She loves squirrels and cardinals, but is wary of yappy dogs of any size – will pet any cat though – and they come to her not him. Able always walks on the street-side, switching back and forth as they cross the road to check out a garden or junk filled porch. He can spy a coin on the road and always pats her hand before dashing out to fetch it while she admonishes him to look both ways. Sara happily sits and watches him on a child’s swing and laughs if he climbs a tree – and they run together with a stick clacking on a picket fence. If there is music of their fancy drifting from a house they always dance a bit if there is room – or just hug if there is not. I could tell you more, but I’ve only been observing them for about a year. I must be crazy too. I’ve taken to watching a lot of older folks – in parks and church and malls. I’m sure their kids think they have memory loss or worse, and that senility means you don’t know what’s going on. I think that many of our Elders just don’t care about the silly things most people like to do, and rightfully choose to live within their memories than cry for me and you. What I do know is that if I can every find someone to love like Able loved Sara, I’d never let her go … Never, ever, ever – let her go.
"the more one pretends at magic, the more awe and wonder will be found in real life." Arnold Furst
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