A helpful nurse pointed me to what seemed to be a closet door. She knocked and asked permission to enter. To my surprise, there was grandpa sitting in the hall of what appeared to be a hospital waiting room. It was his new first floor room. It’s kind of a strange layout — like a “Y.” One branch contains his chair, couch, and television while the other is his bedroom. The trunk of the Y is his bathroom. (For some reason he called it his kitchen.) Besides the odd layout of his new room, it seems to be a good situation. It’s small enough for his needs and doesn’t have steps down which he could fall.
Grandpa seems to be doing well. He gave me a tour of the room and then talked about visits with Aunt Margy, Uncle Bob, and mom. When I asked about the new television, he said that he doesn’t watch it much. “Oh, why’s that?” His reply was interesting, but probably true of most of the people who live there. “I seem to be busy eating all the time.” I guess that time (at ninety years of age) is gauged by the events of the day instead of the dead time in between.
At the end of our visit, I asked if I could pray for him. He said, “Sure.” And just as I was going to begin, he said, “Dear Lord…” and then stopped speaking. I waited for a moment and then prayed. I wonder if that’s the way they did things at the Presbyterian church in Meadville. The liturgy used at grandma’s funeral with its responsive readings and prayers seems to hold a clue(?).
Whatever the case may be, he seems to be in good health and was able to carry a good conversation. It was good to visit with him again.
