What's the size of your heart?

I was glad to know that the series “Extraordinary People” would be showing on TV, managed to catch it last Tuesday…Old Auntie Cai is probably about 80 years old. She’s blind coz of an illness a couple of years ago and she is still plagued by a few illnesses. She lives with her husband who has Alzheimer’s disease. One would probably feel that these two elderly need constant care by others. But you are wrong and I’m terribly wrong. Auntie Cai is a very independent elderly. She even makes beautiful baskets and ornaments out of colourful and small little beads, stringing every single bead diligently. Let me repeat this: She is completely blind. The colours of her baskets and ornaments are wonderfully coordinated, you wouldn’t believe it’s made by a blind elderly, well, I am totally impressed, very much impressed by her patience, determination and her skills despite her handicap. Sometimes, these extraordinary people just put me to shame. Auntie Cai seems such a giving and easy going person. She lives with her husband and they are on PA. I still remember she said that she loves to share what she has, be it homecooked soup or using her skills to help others. She mentioned that she can’t bring along all these with her into the coffin when she dies anyway.

Despite her handicap, she is the sole caregiver of her husband, making sure he has proper meals, making sure he takes his medication and taking care of all his daily needs, sometimes coaxing him as if he’s a child coz of his illness. Her husband left her for about I think twenty four years during their younger days. But when he came back to her again, she graciously forgave and accepted him. I feel that the attentive care that she has given to her husband all these years really warms his heart. He did not say it but I seemed to be able to feel it from the way he talked about her. Love is not having him on his knees, proposing with a diamond ring. It is not about spending millions on a lavish wedding dinner. It is probably not even about saying your vows during the solemnization. Old Auntie Cai has taught me an important and extraordinary lesson about love and life that day.