AN UNFORGETTABLE VISIT!

When people are young, they pursue their passions with all their might, striving to achieve what they desire. This is a time that everyone experiences and must go through. What about when we grow old? The things we want to do often decrease because we no longer have the strength. Some people, when they grow old, suffer from illnesses that make their thinking slower; even physical activities and necessities become more difficult.

Try to imagine, how an elderly person who lives all alone, with no one to care for them. Indeed, it became real yesterday, I came across an image of a grandmother in a small house. Yes, it was really cramped. Inside, a few small grandchildren were watching TV downstairs, while their grandmother was upstairs on the second floor. She could not move and could no longer speak. She just sat in a wheelchair in a dark corner. No one talked to her, no one sat beside her. It was just her, silent! Her eyes made me feel a pang of sadness, and I felt a lot of compassion for her. Those eyes reflected the loneliness and suffering that no one understood. She looked at me as if to say ‘thank you’ for visiting.

When my two companions and I prayed for her and offered her the Eucharist, she received the Lord into her heart in silence, but her eyes were always looking up at us. I did not know what she was thinking or what she wanted to say, but I believe that the Lord would bring warmth and peace within her heart. Although I knew I could not help her much, I shared with her a smile from the bottom of my heart. Smiling, she smiled back at me, oh, how charming!

After we finished praying, she tried her best to utter the word “salamat,” which means “thank you!” This made my heart ache even more and deepened my empathy towards her. I silently prayed for her peace, remembering the Bible verse Romans 15:13: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” I prayed that she would feel the joy and warmth from the Lord, that she was not alone, not spending the long hours of a day, a month, a year, or many years by herself. The Lord is always with her, beside her every moment. Let us love the lonely and the elderly, for their greatest fear is being “abandoned” by their children or loved ones.  All they need is our care, love, and presence.  Always respect and help them, bringing joy and comfort to their lives. They need these so much!

Later in life, we will grow old too, those good deeds may come back to us as memory, acts of grace and compassion or at least, we will relish the happiness in helping and accompanying others in those crucial moments, this challenging stage of life.

Sr. Miriam (Junior), Queen of China Province