Rukai

Username: Rukai
City, Country: Sydney, Australia
Video/Pic (use an external host such as imgur.com or mediafire.com): http://i9.photobucke...zps66df5ad1.jpg

Summary: Meet Isabelle. It's not her real name, but she insisted that we all call her that. She had been the permanent resident in this nursing home since last year with Baby, whom I had the pleasure to babysit today Baby had been with her for over 30 years since her late husband gave it to her, and a few laughs were induced when we found out that the Baby I was babysitting was much older than I am. Admist Isabelle's tablets and inhalers on the crowded bedside table lied a crackling analogue radio, the dial worn from use and more static than voices were heard filling the empty room. The last gift she received from her son before his untimely demise kept Isabelle sane in this artificial environment, although she did confess, it had been boring her a bit with all the sport bulletins. She wouldn't mind being wheeled outside to watch her friends play, but the unsaintly heat in Sydney lately and the fact that almost all of her friends were spending their summer with their grandchildren had kept her frustratedly indoor. In between the silence, my eyes naturally drifted to the small framed canvases adorned the plain walls, enclosing within it cottages and the evergreen hills, to Brisbane with its stunning gold sands and azarus sea. There was even a picture of the beautiful sunset off the coast of Darwin where Isabelle recalled spending with her little family back in the days. She proudly claimed craftmanship of those knitted pieces of herself on the wall, and for once I understood clearly what art was. Her tone rose, despite the frequent gasps for air, when she described her inspiration for each piece, of how long it took to choose the right thread colour, how many stitches it took to get that shape right, or how often her husband would complain. Out story was cut short when Isabelle was handed a handful of pills to keep her heart bumping precious blood and her lungs relatively fluid free, there's one for her arthritis and maybe, just maybe, they would have snuck in a pill to finally give her a good night sleep. As I was on my way out of her room, Isabelle happily picked up the blaring phone. 'My sister', she mouthed to me, 'from Germany'. The creaking door muffled her gentle voice.

I did not know Isabelle before, nor was I even aware of this cosy nursing home snuck in this quaint cul-de-sac. By chance I passed it yesterday, and in the spirit of 9 Days of Caring, I finally gathered enough courage to visit one random resident in there, decked out proudly in Soshified Style. Girls' Generation was not brought up during the visit, instead I got to open the gateway to Grandmas' Generation, and I'm not regretting it one bit. It's not just us giving away, it's also us receiving so much more.

After all, I just had a new grandma.

#9DaysofCaringForGG

Date: 19.01.2013