Points2Ponder

              "Giggles and Alan-- still makes me laugh!"

                                     Points2Ponder

                                                                                                       By Alan P. Scaglone

 

Remember Rodney Dangerfield, anyone?

“I get no respect, I tell ya, no respect at all!”

I remember laughing at his tirades about no one giving him respect.

We all laughed—it was funny!

He said he was an “old” guy and no one paid him any respect.

It was funny because…it wasn’t true… it couldn’t be true…

We were raised to respect our elders, pay them respect, honor their place in our lives, as our elders, and show them the respect they deserved!

That’s the way I was raised…but today?? I think somebody tore this page out of the child rearing handbook!

 

POINTS2PONDER  Why does it look like no one respects our elderly? Why can’t we pay them the respect they deserve JUST because of their longevity?

 

I called my aunt. I call her Giggles!

I call her Giggles because—she makes me laugh!

She always has—no matter what she says, I just find her to be so incredibly, naturally funny.

When my mother passed away, while I was in high school, Giggles took me in. She and my Uncle Pete, became second parents to me.

I started college my senior year in high school—going full time to both—back then, it was NOT common, but it kept me busy!

I would stop by their house each Tuesday and Thursday nights, after class, around 9:30pm, and she always had a plate of dinner waiting for me.

Uncle Pete would ask me how school was and Giggles would ask how my father was—then she would just make me laugh.

The way she said stuff, always with a sarcastic and funny take on it—was healing to my heart.

I didn’t have much to laugh about at that time, being 17, a senior in high school and… missing my mom!

And there was Giggles!

She just knew how to lighten up my day—my cousins Larry and Michael didn’t mind sharing her with me—I became her youngest son.

Truth be told… Giggles and her laughter helped me through a terrible time in my life.

And I have never forgotten it.

Through the years, as I raised my kids, they always called her “Aunt Giggles”, and she would laugh every time they did.

There were times of lapse, but whenever we saw each other again, she still had that knack for making me laugh!

I called her today… she is 84 now, and she is the “official matriarch” of our family now.

She had mentioned to my sister that “I haven’t heard from Alan lately—how’s he doing?”

Which is code for – tell him he better call me!

And I did.

She answered the phone, and I just said, “Giggles?”

And she laughed and said “Alan, how are you, honey?”

I apologized for not calling. Explained that I am still dealing with my brother Joe’s death, 4 months later.

She just reminded me of the good years that I had with him and told me to remember those years.

I reminded her that there weren’t many of those due to Joe never getting over his daughter Nikki’s death.

She told me, “But you’ve got your memories, some good ones. Hold on to those!”

I laughed. There she was, 84 and I am now 52, but… she was “mothering” me again!

And I loved it!

I asked how she was feeling?

And she responded with a line I remember from those Tuesday/Thursday nights way back when… when she walked me out to my car.

“Heaven doesn’t want me and Hell is afraid of me—I’m not going anywhere!”

And once again, I just laughed at Giggles, like I have all these years!

Doesn’t that deserve some respect?

I certainly think so!

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