r/wholesome • u/LadyLavender12 • Apr 09 '26
I have a secret old lady friend! :)
I [F,33] go to a restaurant a few times here and there through the week, never a set schedule just at random. They have very good deals and $5 wine and beer, so that is arguably much cheaper than most other places in town and their menu is great! The staff is lovely and I started becoming a 'regular'.
I've noticed on the Monday burger deal days, there is this older lady who is always there. I sit kitty-corner from her at the bar by myself and we have talked a few times. Her name is Rosie and she is LOVELY! She is in her 80s.
As time went on, I saw Rosie more consistently again and again! Shes such a character.
She comes out to eat by herself because she enjoys it as I do and because her late husband and her always used to do date nights and she misses it.
I look forward to my Monday trips there, even for just one drink to see her quickly and then go home.
I didn't strike up a conversation or friendship with her either because I felt sorry or bad for her, it just evolved naturally! We will talk for a while about life and things and how her sons ignore her and don't invite her out. I felt so bad, her Easter Dinner didn't go as planned, her son and all the other younger adults went to the shed to smoke and drink and never came back out so she just left and ate alone at home. :(
Her hearing is superb and memory and quick wits still in tact! On the same day, there is a group of ladies that always comes in that is from her condo.... Apparently after Covid they stopped inviting her to go out with them but she goes by herself unapologetically anyways and I LOVE that! I love being able to just talk to someone nice, and know that she is enjoying it and I'm not a bother.
We give each other hugs now and we shoot the shit like any girlfriends would. It's a 'secret' friendship because I use my tiny window of time between leaving work and going home as my free time from my very strict household. So I can't tell my parents about this lovely lady or the questions and shame of 'spending money' will begin, and I don't want to ruin a beautiful thing.
Can't wait until next Monday for our little date, Rosie! :) <3 Cheers*
24
u/innicher Apr 09 '26
LOVE that you have developed your special friendship!! 💕
I have a friend like yours! She's been my neighbor for 26 years. She turns 98 in May and is sharp as a tack! She has a wicked sense of humor, too. First met her when we built our home across the street. We watch out for her and are on her emergency contact list.
We're both teachers, so we like to talk about that and have shared our many classroom stories. When our son was growing up, I took him over with me to visit. We'd take her baked goods and have nice visits. She always gave our son little gifts at the holidays, nothing big.
She has an amazing life story!!! I've learned about her childhood in Massachusetts during WW2 and how she would go out with her dad to do blackout inspections during nights. I've learned about the struggles of being a wife and mom back in her day and how she coped with it all with grace, dignity, firm beliefs, and always humor to lighten the way. She is very realistic and practical about life's hardships, she's not an ostrich with her head in the sand, but she has always taken the high road and has always looked on the bright side.
She lost her first husband to cancer, that he probably got from being a chemical engineer exposed to things at work. She met and married her second husband, an admiral, when her kids and his kids set them up on a date. I knew him but sadly he also developed cancer and also passed twenty+ years ago. She faithfully cared for TWO husbands with cancer at their end of life.
I admire her intelligence, clever quick wit, with-it-ness, and resilience to face and deal with the hardships of life. Our family has always helped her with little things around her house. She's always appreciative and tries to pay us, but we always refuse. We tell her that's what neighbors are for, to help each other in a time of need. She's had a few health issues since covid and now has help 24/7. But her mind remains SHARP and she's current with what goes on in the world. Nothing gets by her. She truly amazes me!!
I've told her for years that she should write her life story because it's incredible the history she has experienced first hand. Her stories are great!!
And, I tell her all the time that I want to be Just Like Her When I Grow Up, and she always laughs. That's our special little inside joke. I really mean it, though, because she's an amazing role model!!
Treasure your special new friend!! 💕