8/8/09 Electric razor, given awayMemories can flood back at strange moments.
When I put the posting on Craigslist offering a free electric razor, I wasn't sure if anyone would bite. I didn't figure there'd be a huge market for pre-owned shavers, even if the price is free. Still, within twenty-four hours, a friendly-sounding guy was on his way over to pick it up.
I was ready to make fun him - on the blog, not in person - and was very curious to meet the strange man who was trolling the internet for used shaving equipment.
Scott pulled up in his family van. His wife and kids waited as he stepped out and greeted me in the driveway. He was probably in his mid-forties, a little pudgy, and he smiled warmly and shook my hand firmly. After a bit of small talk, I admitted to him that I hadn't been sure anyone would want a used electric razor.
"Oh," he said, "Well, it'll be perfect for us. It's for my dad. He's in the nursing home and, uh..."
That's when my grandparents showed up.
My grandfather has been a life-long mentor and role model for me. Although he passed away a decade ago, he continues influence me daily, through the lessons he taught and the examples he set.
He suffered a stroke during my freshman year of college and spent the last years of his life in a wheelchair, unable to communicate in meaningful ways. He also lost the use of his right arm, so my grandmother began using an electric razor to shave him. I remember sitting in their kitchen as that razor buzzed, my grandmother working so hard to care for the man she'd been married to for fifty years.
I don't even know if Scott finished that sentence about his father. Standing in my driveway, I was transported back, to a warm kitchen on the coast of Maine. For a few brief moments, I was back with two people I love so much that their deaths still make me ache.
I gave Scott a razor today, but he gave me something far more valuable. An unexpected visit from my grandparents. Thanks, Scott.
No comments:
Post a Comment