window into the past

elderly people who are still all there are the coolest people to spend time with. when you look around their living space you see ancient photos that seem current to them and furniture that to a younger person only exist in the movies or a thrift shop. you also get a window into the past. history books cant give you what an elderly person can. a book can tell the facts and even about how people may have been effected by these facts, but a book can only be read. you can ask an elderly person questions . they may not always remember, but when they do its amazing.

years ago when my great uncle was still alive he told me about how when he was small there were only horse and buggies. he also said that there used to be a stone in front of homes and stores . there was a large gap between the ground and the carriage. the men could easily jump down , but the women in their dresses could not do so gracefully . this is where the stone comes in. the women would step onto the stone and then onto the ground. it was much more graceful this way. he also said that years after horse and buggies were just a memory these stones remained. after awhile people didnt even remember why they were there in the first place.

after cars were invented one always knew when it was a good year economically when one looked in the driveway at the university and there were many cars parked there. (this of course was outside of new york. )

my great uncle also described the thrill of riding on a train for the first time. there werent even any seats, but for him it was just so exciting to travel city to city in such a modern mode of transportation.

my great uncle also lived years before window screens were invented. he said it was awful when one rode on a bus. all the bugs would fly in your face. not a great visual indeed. it was something i had never thought of . i thought window screens had been around forever. who knew?

i could have read all about these events in a book, but these facts on their own may not have actually interested me. knowing someone who had experienced such events made them seem less of a fairytale and more plausible. my great uncle not only knew about these things, he lived them.

there are so many nuggets elderly people carry within them. we must help them pass them on to us before they arent able to pass them on anymore.

airport reunions

whenever i travel home for holidays there is always the anticipation of running in to long ago friends . when i was in college it was the best. it was always a blast reuniting with old friends. now im just happy to see a familiar face. even if i see an old friend traveling im lucky if i recognize them. looks change over the years. some for the better. others for worse.
when i see the college students travelling im always nostalgic..... sometimes i forget and search their faces trying to recognize in them an old friend which would be impossible.... thats the thing. i know that time has passed, but its hard to admit. i dont feel any older than 21 , but i know that i am.
my home city's airport is always fun. i may not recognize my old friends faces, but i usually can spot their parents. they look more familiar anyway. they've aged too, but since they always were at least 20 years older it seems they arent much different. they still appear older.
it always amazes me how people age at such varied rates. i dont know why this should surprise me. the physical mirrors the spiritual. people reach different milestones in their lives at varied ages- marriage... children... careers... own homes... why wouldnt this go for aging?
when one is a kid everyone is in first grade at six yrs old, tenth grade at fifteen, get a drivers license at 16 or 17 depending on the city, but when you leave high school you are on your own. you might finish college at 21 , you might finish college at 40 or you might not go to college at all.
some marry at 20 , others at 30 or 40, some never. some make seventy thousand at 30. some will never make that much money. ever. some go gray in their late twenties, some dont get a white hair until forty. some have liver spots at 23 others dont have a laugh line until 50.
i guess its easier to hide the passage of time in your achievements or lack there of . just dont mention one's demons and no one will be any wiser. when one notices visually how much someone has changed its more striking. much harder to hide. if one looks close enough one can tell. only so much one can hide.
one notices the passage of time most amongst those one hasnt seen in awhile which is why i feel the passage of time most when i revisit my former city of residence.