In the past, I have admired a great many people. Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt was my role model. There were many great composers, scientists, artists, that I respected and loved.

Now, late in life, I made a friend whom I admire greatly, who has helped me in many different ways to overcome my loneliness and handicap, I had known him for many years, as an active member of the Board in our cooperative. He is a tall, strong looking man in his sixties, a real giant of a man with a large head, usually covered by a Texan Hat like John Wayne.

I belonged to a stamp club for over thirty years, and one day he turned up at our session in the public library. He was very enthusiastic about the idea of collecting  and exchanging doubles monthly. I could be helpful, since I had accumulated many doubles over my long career. I started him off with countries of interest. He took me along to stamp shows periodically.

He showed interest in my writing of poetry  and essays. He is an inspired history teacher, highly intelligent and we found we had a lot of common interests. He has two granddaughters whom he adores and gets upset when they don’t show the affection that he expects.

When I was in the Shervier home to convalesce, he came to visit and made sure I was properly looked after, made sure that my bathroom was changed to accommodate my limited mobility. With one word, I felt secure that someone in my house was looking out for me.

At this moment my friend is in hospital, desperately ill and I can only express hope that he will make a complete recovery. 

 

© Gerta Freeman - April 19, 2010