Unstoppable at 86

So we’re sitting in the hospital waiting room when the glass doors open from the outside and in walks an elderly man with his cane. My sister points out that it is “Mr. Smith”, my dad’s neighbor. Mr. Smith and his wife brought color to our neighborhood over 35 years ago. He and my dad have developed a friendship over that time that was pretty cool to hear about from Mr. Smith. (his speech, pace and vocabulary were distinct—-I’m still trying to figure out which M. Freeman character. His use of “A-ok” and a chuckle from such a serious face was like a scene from a movie.) —-When he arrived he was visibly wore out. And he greeted me by describing a host of health problems of his own(probably to explain why he was out of breath, because he wasn't really complaining.). After sat down and caught his breath, he told me that it is painful to get old. Mr. Smith at 86 had made this drive to visit my dad and wait for him to get done with the surgery. We thanked him, and told him that the surgery was several hours and he didn’t have to hang around. But his silence combatted sound reasoning every time we suggested it was okay if he needed to go home, so we shut up. —-Needless to say, he stayed until he got to see his neighbor in the recovery room. He prayed a prayer of thanksgiving over my Dad in that recovery room that made me want to stand taller, fall on my face, look for the glory of God to enter the room, or something. His prayer was eloquent, and most importantly from the heart. It was moving. It was real. —-With his mission complete, he asked which lane to get in to go home so that he could avoid merging in traffic before crossing the bridge. This was just a reminder of the frailty of life and old-man problems (that we’ll all experience one day). —-He had plenty of health problems, many of which he said kept him in that prison of a house of his. This gentleman that had done his time in the army and spent many years as an Educator taught me something in just a few hours. I’m still processing what the “something” was but it was time well-spent. At 86, Mr. Smith was unstoppable.