Cutting-edge Daily Life of Elderly #13 Bucket List

Mrs. M, an old friend of my mother, came to our house the other day.

I told her that Mom had passed away six years before, but she said it’s fine and still wanted to visit us.

 

Mom and Mrs. M worked together for three years as senior and junior colleagues at a facility for children with disabilities when they were in their 20s. They got married around the same time, and both left the facility: Mrs. M to run a Japanese noodle restaurant in the Izu-Shimoda region, and Mom to run a candy store in Kawasaki City, almost 200 km away from Mrs. M.

Apparently, my whole family visited Mrs. M's house when I was little, but I don’t remember a thing.

 

Since leaving the facility, the two ladies stayed in touch through New Year's cards but had few chances to reunite in person, each being busy with everyday life. Before they knew it, half a century has passed.

 

Last November, Mrs. M decided to close the restaurant, considering her age, after having a knee surgery. “On the last day of the restaurant, all the neighbors came over to say good bye. I was really glad I kept the restaurant running. It was such a joy to learn that the place was loved by local people.”

“Now that the new year has started and the weather has gotten nicer and warmer, I’ve decided to visit places and old friends with fond memories. Being over 80, I thought I should travel while I could move around.” – Hmm, that would explain it.

 

Mrs. M and her husband stayed at their daughter’s house in Tokyo, and their grandchild, a taxi driver, took her to wherever she liked to visit. The first on her list was visiting Mom.

 

As we sat in the living room, Mrs. M took out a badge of the facility they used to work at and said, “Your mother really took good care of me.” She then told me stories about Mom's younger days, the part of her I had never heard of.

In return, I showed her some photo albums and shared some memories about Mom when they were away from each other.

 

When I asked where she would go next, Mrs. M said, “I think I’ll go to my old workplace, though I’ve heard that the place has a new building and a new name,” showing me a picture of the new facility building on her smartphone screen.

 

Chances are I will never see this old friend of Mom again.

Even though they worked together only for three years, Mom was the first on Mrs. M’s list for what could be her final trip. 

“It was really nice meeting you. Goodbye.” As I greeted on her way out, my heart ached a bit with a pang of sadness.

<Written by Mamiko Kashima>