Shanti , 70 years
of age surprised her neighbourhood in Koramanagala when word got around that she and her husband
Jayesh, 79 years were planning to move to a retirement home in suburban
Bangalore.
‘I thought she was
so happy and settled here’, Lata a neighbour confided anxiously to Sundara, a
lady who lived a few houses away.
Back in 2005,
Jayesh had retired from a government job, and with the small amount they had as
savings they had constructed a small bungalow on a small plot of land they had
bought way back a decade earlier, and moved in.
Life seemed so
well planned, as they look ahead on their retirement life together. Their two
sons were also staying at Bangalore on Mysore Road, and they would drop by on
the weekends especially festivals and family occasions.
Then a few years
ago, things began to sour. Jayesh began to exhibit some strange behaviour,
muttering at times to himself, and increasingly appearing forgetful. A medical
examination alarmingly revealed the worst: multiple strokes in the brain and
the onset of dementia. For a few months, it was exhausting, as over time the
conditions worsened.
Then a year ago,
Shanti slipped and fell while descending the flight of staircase. She had a hip
surgery that took several months to get set right, but now did not allow her
the mobility she required. With her immobilisation severely restricted, and the
needs of her husband requiring her to provide even more demanding care. As much
as her two children tried to help, it was not enough. She realised that she and
Jayesh required full time care, not weekly visits.
She made up her
mind: she would have to take the painful decision to move her and her husband
to retirement home, which would assure her the help and support they both
needed.
The protests were
many but she prevailed on her dissuaders, and they were many, assuring them that she had thought
through this very carefully. This plan was best for Jayesh and her. She
confessed it did break her heart to move out of this bungalow and neighbourhood,
she was so well settled in and which she loved so much.
Soon, a ‘for sale’
sign, a few weeks later, the commercials concluded, a van moved in early dawn
to carry away her furniture which she
gifted to her friends.
Then she and
Jayesh bid tearful farewell, to their friends, as they took a taxi that would
move them to their new home far away to a strange place they would now have to
consider home.
Her thoughts as
the taxi turned the corner were with Jayesh. How soon would it be till he
forgot about their home they left behind. For once, in this matter, she hoped
it would be soon.
What’s your
retirement plan?
