Lessons from John

Jill and I have an elderly friend, John, who we visit once a week. When we're hanging out with John, we usually let him do most of the talking because he doesn't have anyone to talk to for the most part throughout the week. He talks to us about his love of fishing and catching fish in the ocean as a kid. He talks to us about how he's won awards for tennis, golf, and shooting. He talks about his service in the military, his love for his pet bird, how he likes to collect pictures of lighthouses, and really, anything to do with a lighthouse. John seems to be a pretty happy man at 81 years old.

The one thing, though, that's missing from John's life are his kids. His three kids are all alive and well but he mentioned to us that he's lived in Provo for seven years and that he can count on his fingers the number of times that he's either seen his kids or heard from his kids in the past seven years. When John was telling us about this empty part of his life, Jill and I were both squirming a little in our seats for a couple reasons. First; we obviously felt terrible for John and wondered how his kids could really neglect him. John is perfectly fine at 81years old. He has a sharp mind, he's social, and it's actually a lot of fun to be around him. Second; it made us realize how important our parents are to us and how we would never want to neglect them.

John seemed to understand that his kids have been busy with their own families and careers but he told us that all he's wished for has been a phone call, a hand-written letter, or a visit.We, of course, can't solve John's problem of not being able to see his kids that often but we can definitely be a friend to him by spending time with him. Although he is sad about not seeing his kids, he seems to keep himself pretty busy by going on long walks with a cart that he's made. This is no ordinary shopping car of sorts--it's basically a survival cart. Attached to his cart are several things; an umbrella, a flashlight, a chair- just in case he wants to rest from walking, two cup holders, a cane-not for walking but "for hitting dogs", reflectors, and an American flag.

John, Jill, and I have become good friends over the course of a few weeks. We find his stories really interesting and like I said, he is a fun guy to hangout with. Most importantly he's been teaching us lessons that he hasn't realized he's been teaching. He's helped us understand even more how important family is and to always stay close with family. Jill and I are really close with our families. We always want to spend time with them and if we had it our way, we would always be with them. Unfortunately things get in the way like school.....work.....and.......school. We love both school and work but we love our families more and are excited to be close with them forever.