Who Would've Thought It? Certainly Not Me!

My wife and I are now living in senior housing. Though I barely think of myself as a senior, here I am, in senior housing. This is a 23 story building with apartments for ages 55 or over. And I actually like it.

First of all, there's a built-in community. Just walk out of your apartment door! Oh, I know that the true meaning of community is more than just a number of people hanging around together. Community implies commonality. And we have just that. There are activities which tenants can engage in as a group, such as art classes, a far cry from the isolation we endured in Bloomington. There are movie nights, bingo nights, and other things. Hey! Bingo's not lame! It's fun. And finally, there are interdenominational worship services. In our sister building about a block away, one can also attend a 12-step meeting.

A tenant can also have a pet if he or she is so inclinced. As long as the pet has had proper immunizations, it's welcome to join us. At this point in my life, I can't imagine not having a cat, and we do have one whose name is Claudia. Obtained by my wife from a Beverly Hills animal rescuer, she's an affectionate ball of fur whose company we both enjoy.

Although neither of us needs it right now, there's also an assisted living/nursing home connected to our building by an underground tunnel. Since we never know when our health can take a sudden and debillitating turn for the worse, that's some comfort. I feel so grateful right now, as we had had two years of the worst "luck" of our married lives until we moved here. Could it be that our "luck" is turning? Could it be that "fortune" is beginning to smile on us at last? I certainly hope so. We deserve it, no questions asked!

The feelings one has after a long stretch of very difficult problems is a kind of relief that's hard for me to describe. The constant knot in my stomach is gone. The nearly overwhelming fear is gone. I'm much more able to help my wife with any difficulty she might have. The closest I can come to describing it is that it's like getting out of prison. I see sunlight. I feel the breeze. I hear laughter. And I sleep.