After all these years, it’s still interesting to see people’s responses when I tell them what I do for a living.
As soon as I say, “We help to rescue homeless and abandoned elders in Nepal and Guatemala,” there is invariably a moment where the other person’s brain seems to short circuit: “Wait. What?”
Since I understand what they’re going through (I went through it myself in 2017, during my first trip to Nepal), I patiently explain it again. It’s still a tough concept to grasp for most of us. Most folks need to clarify again: “Wait, don’t they take care of their parents in those countries? You know, the whole family lives together or something?”
No. Not always.
Here’s the lovely, petite Doña Anna María. She loves to sit next to Doña María del Carmen during the day, but sleeps in her chair quite a bit. She’s too frail to reach back and wheel herself where she needs to go, so one of the nuns wheels her everywhere.
Doña Ana María has four children, all of whom abandoned her in her home. (Why, yes, I do feel like a broken record some days!) Once again, because of the kindness of neighbors who realized what had happened, she was taken first to the hospital, where she was treated for malnutrition (read: starving), and then brought to Hogar Betania.
This is all we really know about her history.
What we know about her present existence is that she’s truly grateful for where she is, for the care she receives, and for everyone who helps her. She was quick to smile at me and thank me when I served her meals or when I took her dirty dishes to the sink.
And this is why we do what we do here at The Global Humanity Initiative.
Yes, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with caring for your parent with dementia. Yes, you can reach the end of your rope frequently. In the West, though, we have resources — and even we get overwhelmed. In Third World countries, those resources are nonexistent. It becomes too much for the adult children, and they oftentimes walk away. Not the right decision by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s all they can think of at that time.
I have always believed that every elder should leave this existence knowing they are not alone in this world. They should have a family around them, a safe place to live, and unconditional love during their last years, months, weeks, and days.
Together, we can make this a reality for every elder.
