Do You Know my Mother?

I did a lot of people watching in JCP on our field trip. I followed a mom and her two kids for a while-funny and frustrated conversations. However, I was most struck by two elderly ladies. One was obviously shopping with her grandson. Their conversation was loving and polite, so very, very patient. The other lady wandered the store alone. Often she stopped at an intersection of walkways with a confused look on her face. Pausing a few moments, then she would take off in another direction. When she checked out, a stock lady had to walk her to the cashier--she couldn't find it on her own. When the lady with her teenage grandson checked out, he hugged her, patted her back, and kissed her neck. As they walked out of the store, he kept his arm on her shoulder. They chatted back and forth constantly. I could tell by the young man's speech, that he had special needs. I couldn't help but compare both these women to my own mother. She practically raised my ADHD nephew when my sister couldn't handle him. He's an old married guy in the Navy now. Lately, she's becoming more and more disoriented. I wonder when people see my mother, the lady patiently counting pennies holding up the line, wandering aimlessly in the mall, shopping with her grandkids, do they really SEE her? They can't possibly know what a great mom and grandma she is--are they patient, polite? Do they see their own mother or do they sigh and huff in frustration?