A Close Encounter......

Last week I went to buy bottled water at Lowe's. Yes, the home improvement store. I improved our home with five cases of 24 count bottles because they were less than $4 a piece. They were just inside the front door. Upon entering I saw an old man beginning to head towards the door, walking very slowly, with a cane. Yeah, kind of made me think of my dad in his last year. Made me think of VolleyGirl who just loves old people and says she wants to give them a hug. In that few seconds I thought, should I speak to him, tell him to "have a nice day", or "how are you today?" I imagined describing him to VolleyGirl and telling her that I spoke......so I did. "How are you today?" I asked. He came closer, somewhat confused. Again, "How are you today", I said. He replied, "I am better now, able to eat now." I told him that was good. He looked at me puzzled and begin to tell me he couldn't recall who I was. I reassured him that he didn't know me, that I just wanted to say hi to him. He told me all his medications can make it difficult, that's what happens when you get old. I was informed that he lived alone and he had just spent $300 on a tiller to plant tomatoes, that it may seem silly but that he would have it from now on. He asked my name and I asked him his. Then he asks, Are you married?" I replied in that silly, sort of flirty way I always treated the older folks at the nursing home, you know, to make them feel good! , "Yes, sorry!" He enthusiastically as he looked right eye to eye and said, "Me too!" I'm a thinking I made him feel a little too good, or at least better than I had intended. He said something about willing to share his tomatoes with me but I had already felt a little icky and just did the pleasantries and moved on. Lesson learned: don't try to make the old men feel THAT good!