Blame it on technology, globalization, busy lives, or whatever you choose, but gone are the days when neighbors knew their neighbors. Our collective sense of community has vanished in many parts of the world. This is most recently evidenced in the death of a 72-year-old woman in South Carolina. She lived in a small town; that is until she died alone in her home. Read the news article here.
While it may not be that stunning to hear a 72-year-old woman died of natural causes, what is stunning is that no one noticed . . . for 18 months! During that time her house was sold for back taxes and her dog died inside from thirst. Only after her decomposing body was found did people realize they hadn’t seen her in a while. “We didn’t know this lady existed,†the town’s sheriff said. “It’s a sad tragedy this lady had absolutely nobody who cared enough to check on her – very sad.â€
The woman lived the life of a hermit and didn’t seek contact with others, but I believe the local florist’s comment sums it up best when she said, “In this day, we’re supposed to be out of everybody’s business, but I think sometimes that goes too far.â€
My only hope is that this case prods people to check up on older neighbors, to make sure they have a safety net in place. We should not assume that someone else is doing it. If we as a society don’t watch out for our most vulnerable populations, I fear what will happen when more older adults make up the bulk of our population. Not everyone can be served, or wants to be served, by senior housing complexes, assisted living centers and nursing homes. There is a national push to keep seniors in their homes for as long as possible, but that can’t be safely done without the help of family, friends, and neighbors. We can’t expect government and non-profits to do all the work. There is a role for each of us to play, it’s a collective responsibility.
Photo by benleto – some rights reserved
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey Derrick,
That’s a sad story indeed. You’re doing great work by highlighting these stories to raise awareness and ask for change. Your site design also looks new and improved. Great work!
I couldn’t agree with you more to get word out about one of our most forgotten resources, our seniors. In my opinion, it’s a crime against all of humanity when seniors are tossed aside like yesterday’s trash.
Seniors don’t seem to have much respect given to them in this society of ours. It rots. People don’t visit their elders enough, they say they are too busy but I believe people don’t visit because every time you see your senior relative or friend, you are faced with your own mortality. Who wants to be reminded that your body is one step closer to death with every minute that passes?
We all need some vitamin L (L for Love) to keep our spirits nurtured and happy. It doesn’t matter if we are a baby, teenager, middle aged or a senior, with out it we will wither and die, like a flower with out water and sun.
Our world will be a happier place when we all start to show compassion and give a helping hand to anyone who crosses our paths. All we have is each other. Government is not going to solve the problem, because the solution all starts with YOU and ME. If everyone does one thing to help someone else, it will soon become contagious and our future will be brighter.
That is soo horribly sad! Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment,(I did reply on my blog) your blog is very impressive and informative. I’ll be adding a link to it soon so I can find you quickly. I was just taking a break before I go down to check on my uncle ~ I couldn’t live with myself if something like this happened to him.