Rachel on pitying those in need

October 29th, 2008 was a big day for me, because on that day I was privileged to have an awesome conversation with a man that was 98 years old! As I think about that I am blown away because this means he was born in 1910. Imagine what he has seen and been a part of; all of the things that I have only read and dreamt about. He was telling me that he served in WWII and he was showing me some newspaper clippings that he had hung up on his wall that commemorated his achievements. He currently lives in a nursing home and is in a wheel chair. Sometimes I go to these places and feel pity for the people that are there because I see there situation and it looks so hopeless and sad. It’s easy to get caught up in pity when you are looking at the outside circumstances or a person’s appearance. What I have come to realize is that the last thing these people need is pity. The beauty I have come to see lies in listening to their life story and through that celebrating the life they have lived. To pity them is to pity their life and that would be a true disgrace to who they are! My newfound friend turned out to be quite a chatterbox. He told me about some of his job experiences after the war and proceeded to give me advice on how I should NOT do drugs. Pretty sound advice if you ask me! He also suggested that if I get into a healthcare career I should make sure I know what I am doing so as to avoid making simple mistakes like some people he knew! He tended to repeat or should I say reinforce some of the things he said but that was fine by me since it helped me to remember it better, and I figure good advice should be remembered, right? I hope to visit my new friend soon and do a little more celebrating of his life by hearing all his amazing adventures!