You’d wonder why she didn’t give up already.

Eighty years old and on a new diet. There she was getting ready slipping on her slip-on shoes because “I can’t bend that far.” She’d laugh as she said it and out the doors of the seniors’ home she’d go. Where to? Weight Watchers.

She’d come back all electrified from the leaders’ speeches.

“I can’t believe how much they know today” she’d say. “No one talked like that in my time.”

Of course that was an introduction to ask what the woman in the Weight Watchers group talked about but at least she had the etiquette to leave a space to change topics. Although with Mrs. H. you wanted to hear every word she had to say. Because even though she may have not conquered the 20 pounds she’d always wanted to banish she had that spirit that kept trying. And this is a quality not so easy to come by.

“First of all I want to say that I always thought it was a weakness to get help but I see it’s the opposite.”

She goes deep into thought.

“This woman who speaks is something special.” Mrs. H. has to compliment like flowers have to blossom.

“She spoke about Thomas Edison.”

Mrs. H. gets that look on her face like she’s about to take us on a little side trip.

“Where I grew up we lived around the corner from Thomas Edison’s Laboratory.” She waits to see if the subject lights you up or not. She’s so good about that not charging on when her listener’s not interested. That’s exactly what makes her so interesting — that she’s interested in you.

“I remember one day we had a little class trip from school. In those days those little trips were exciting.” She takes time out to smile. Just to make sure you get the point that today kids need roller coasters the size of theEmpireStateBuildingto get the adrenaline going.

“We were all excited but that day — how do you call it when the sun covers the moon or the moon covers the sun and everything gets dark and you’re not allowed to look at the sun or you could go blind?” She’s asks but clearly wants to remember herself.

“An e__” We don’t want to interrupt to give away the answer because we don’t want to steal that joy she gets when it’s her own discovery.

“Eclipse!” She snaps her fingers twice.

“That day there was an eclipse and we walked about a mile with blindfolds over our eyes so we shouldn’t look up. We had to link hands and walk all the way like that.” We see her mind going all the way back there.

“I learned something from that day.…” She pauses for effect. “I learned that even if there’s an eclipse if you’re supposed to do something you find the way.”

She shakes herself back to her original train of thought. “The speaker spoke about never giving up. What if Thomas Edison had said to himself after the first try at a light bulb ‘I give up. I’m a failure’? No he tried this way and then that way adding something taking something away.” Mrs. H. takes a sip of the water she likes to drink with a thin lemon wedge on the side.

“Imagine if he’d given up. We’d have no electricity.” She points to the light bulb. “$$$separatequote$$‘Never give up’ that nice speaker said. ‘BeforeEdisongot it right he tried over 3500 times.’$$$separatequote$$$”