Boomerang

Day 120

“You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

I wrote about starting a tornado-of-kindness a few days ago, and since then I keep attracting stories that not only show how a small act of kindness can transform a situation, but I’ve realized that the story itself is an act of kindness to the person hearing about it.

Hearing about an act of kindness has the same effect as receiving an act of kindness – it makes you feel blessed and want to pay-it-forward.

This is one such story, but it has an added twist – hearing about the people who heard about their story served as an act of kindness to the people in the story. The reaction to kindness and love was an act of kindness itself. This story is so heartwarming, it will make you cry tears of joy, and inspire you to do something kind for someone else. Another tornado-of-kindness act.

The granddaughter posted the video below online with a detailed description of what was happening in it, so instead of trying to paraphrase, here it is in the her own words:

“My grandparents Laura and Howard have been married 73 years. In this video Howard is 92 and Laura is 93. Laura (Grandma) is at a hospice facility making peace with her final days. I was lucky enough to capture this precious, heart-melting moment between the two of them. Howard (Grandpa) is singing to her their love song, the song that comforted her when he went away to fight in World War II.

At family gatherings, it was not uncommon for the two of them to sing this song together, each taking a verse and serenading the other. In fact, after fifty years of marriage, they renewed their vows and performed this song as a duet for the entire family at the reception. Sadly, Grandma is now too weak to sing, but that doesn’t stop her from saying the words to him. Howard then takes over for her and sings the rest of the song to her while stroking her face.

Moments before this video began, when Grandma heard that Grandpa was in the room, she asked if she could hold him. Grandpa cannot stand on his own, but he immediately pulled his wheelchair close to her bed ready to make it happen. My cousin, Serena, who is a physical therapist, helped him to his feet and held him up throughout the entire song.

You might notice above her bed there is a sign that says, “Patient Blind.” That is because she has macular degeneration, so she cannot see much of anything but shadows and light. That doesn’t stop her from looking deep into her love’s eyes. Grandpa, on the other hand, has lost most of his hearing, so you’ll notice us repeating things for him since Grandma is to weak to raise her voice.

The song used in the video is “You’ll Never Know” performed by Rosemary Clooney with Harry James. Our family prefers this version because everyone always said Grandma had a voice just like Rosemary Clooney.

After posting this video to Facebook, it began to go viral and all the outpouring of love lifted everyone’s spirits… including Grandma’s! They originally gave her just a week to live, but hospice eventually deemed her well enough to go back home to live out her remaining days. 

She is still considered “Terminal,” however, as of this posting my beautiful Grandma Laura Virginia is still with us resting peacefully at home. Our family along with the wonderful people from hospice are taking care of her and making sure she remains as pain-free and comfortable as possible while she prepares for her nearing departure. We all thank you so much for the love and kind words.”

It’s never too soon to do something nice, even if it’s just reacting positively to someone’s story that brought you joy.

Joy is contagious, no matter what the source. Spread it, whenever, and however you can.  Share your journey, it will spread joy, it will make a difference. Who knows, maybe your story will add days to someone’s life.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!