My kids and I were at the bookstore. Everyone had gotten a book and I told them all if they read quietly they could share some of the big cookies.
As we were sitting there a thirty-ish year old man walked into the dining area pushing a walker on wheels. He had trouble moving his legs and was very slow. An older woman was directly behind him with her left arm on his back and her right hand pushing/steering the walker gently.
I looked around and saw that everyone was looking at the man. I made sure my kids weren’t staring but I noticed the man look up and take in every pair of eyes on him. He was attempting to walk to a table and chair two tables over from us. His arms were shaking with effort.
As he got to the chair the mother darted around to pull the chair out and then she ran back around the table and got behind him and put her hands under his arms to support him. “Easy. Easy. Easy,” she said as he collapsed into the chair.
His face was red and I could see he was so frustrated. He looked up at her and then raised his voice at her right there. “You’re being nuts,” he said. “Why are you all over me?”
She hesitated so he asked again, this time louder.
She finally said in a half whisper, “If you fall I’m not strong enough to pick you up anymore.”
Wow. It was an insight into a very difficult life, one she responded to with love and caring for her son.
This didn’t seem to help his mood but it spoke volumes about a mother’s love. If that’s not a love to learn from I don’t know what is.
