Annie P.

I met her today at the nursing home.  My friend Margaret and I were making a visit to hand out some things the kids at church had made for the folks there.  Thanksgiving wishes made with love.  Our church has a ministry there and for a while, I taught a Bible study, but that was many moons ago.
There are three wings in the building so I went one way and Margaret went another.  We were to meet back in the middle and go down the last wing together.  It was in the third room that I met Annie.  She sat on her bed and welcomed me graciously.  As I handed her the Thanksgiving greeting, she moved over and begged me to sit for awhile.  How could I refuse?
She has been there for several years.  When I asked her how come I had not met her before, she let me know that she knew me.  (Okay, my memory is shameful at best.)  She wanted me to guess her age and after much play of 'higher and higher', I finally arrived at the correct number - 92.  Her side of the room was fully decorated with pictures of loved ones and her younger days.  She had mementos of every holiday there is, lining the walls and shelves.
Annie was delightful.  She spoke of her childhood and showed us a picture of her when she was twenty.  Beautiful...and her dress cost only five dollars. She plowed fields at the age of six - behind a mule, not a donkey - and worked on neighbors' farms for twenty-five cents a day.  Her mother worked for thirty-five and Annie informed me that she worked just as hard as her mom, but didn't get paid as much because she was just a child.  I believe her.  She was baptized in a river at the age of fifteen, along with a hundred others.  She said she worried that the preacher's arm would be to tired too finish the task.  (These are the things preachers live for.)
Margaret finally tracked me down, wondering where in the world I was, I am sure.  She, too, began to be enchanted by Annie.  They shared farm stories.  Annie said she knew Margaret, as well.
Upon leaving, we promised her we would be back to see her.  She said she does not get many visitors.  I am afraid that is true for so many.  As I sat there on her bed, I was acutely aware than someday this could be me.  We do not know what the future holds for each one of us.  Life is often unpredictable.
What a treasure she is - a storehouse of information from the past. A resource more valuable than gold, because she can tell of what we will never know....what it was like to live without all the gizmos of today.  She has captivated my heart and I thank the Lord for allowing me to meet her.
May we all be more mindful of these lovely people, hidden from our sight, but not from His.  Just visit them.  You do not need a reason. They are waiting for you. 
Lord, bless the ones who care so diligently for them.