Gentle Aged Man

One of my newer students at the seniors' day care is without a doubt old. But how old? I couldn't tell. He is soft spoken, polite, as thin as can be, with smooth, almost completely unwrinkled skin. He walks slowly and tentatively.

During my class, I noticed him unobtrusively wiping his mouth after coughing, and I noted the blood staining his handkerchief.

When I asked one of the staff about him, I heard this story.

He is 79. His wife died about 15 years ago. He lives alone with his son in government sponsored housing, which means a very small, most likely old, apartment. His son is disabled and does not have the use of his legs. They live off of his meager pension and the son's disability allowance.

From just meeting him you would never guess what his life was like. It sounds really tough. People are so much more than appearances.

"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama