I jotted down these lines while I was at my grandparent’s apartment.
The grandparents have aged, but all their possessions are exactly as I remember them. On the left of me is the couch that I used to fight my sister on over ten years ago. It still looks as new as I remember it. The ugly green cushions I used to throw at my sister are handling the years better than their owners.
The lines were going to be turned into a blog post, but when I got back to my aunt’s apartment and started writing, I realized that this was not the story to tell. Instead, my thoughts turned how quickly things have changed since the last time I was in Hong Kong just five months ago.
Back in November, my grandfather had his second stroke leaving the left side of his body extremely weak. The lack of strength in his left hand has means he is unable to feed himself. His weak left leg has required him to use a walker as well as get assistance to go to the bathroom. The left side of my grandfather’s mouth no longer moves when he talks, reducing his speech to incomprehensible mumbling. My aunt who has been living at my grandparents’ apartment since the stroke told me that my grandfather has already improved a lot. I cannot begin to imagine how bad things were back in November.
As a proud man, my grandfather is not handling his situation very well. Just a few months ago, he was able to do everything himself but now the maid has to help him with practically everything. Gone is the spark of life from my grandfather’s eyes. When I visited this time, he did not even ask me anything about my studies in Shanghai. In fact, he did not seem to have much interest me or anything at all, leaving me to talk to my grandmother, who barely even remembers me. The indignities that come with age, have robbed my grandfather of his spirit. I fear he may not have much time left and I even I do not want to see him live so long if he so unhappy.
Exacerbating the situation is my third uncle, who is in Hong Kong helping take care of my grandparents. When I asked my grandfather how he was doing, my uncle interrupted so he could tell me about how weak my grandfather’s hand had become. However, simply telling me was not enough, my uncle also had to demonstrate it. My uncle laid out a section of the newspaper in front of my grandfather and dared him to turn the page with his left hand. The next few minutes were heart breaking as I watched my proud grandfather repeatedly attempt and fail at turning the page. My uncle on the other hand found my grandfather’s struggle so amusing that he was laughing out loud. The demonstration stopped before I could put a stop to it, but I could see from my grandfather’s face that the damage had already been done.
After witnessing such a disgusting display, I would not put it past my uncle to take advantage of my grandfather’s feeble state to solve his financial woes.
-muffinman
