(September 24, 2011)
I spent some time today with my great Aunt Kay. She just turned 98. My kids can’t wait for her to be a centenarian. The countdown is on.
It is sometimes hard to think about being that old. And you wonder would you really want it. I have to say, with the exception of some hearing difficulties, the conversation was coherent and interesting. To say her wits still remain would be a tremendous understatement. I remember my grandmother telling me how getting old is the strangest thing. It is somehow still you but when you look in the mirror, someone else is looking back. Inside, however, is the young person you have been all along. Aunt Kay still seems…. well…. young somehow.
As my conversation with her began, so did the Mets game. She watches every single game from beginning to end. She started telling me that, despite all of their losses, they are still playing “very well”. This is a rather funny statement since here at the end of September, in the year 2011, the Mets are at least 400 games out of first place. I think she may have been the only person watching this particular game.
I started telling her about a book I just finished reading to my daughter over the summer: In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson. It is one of my favorites, rich with an adorable character, interesting storyline, accurate historic detail, and laugh out loud humor. A little girl from an illustrious clan in China moves with her mother and father to Brooklyn, New York in 1947. The story tells about the little girl’s experience as she tries to understand American culture. And as she learns the ways of her American peers, she falls in love with baseball. More importantly, she follows Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers through his rookie year. The story parallels their lives as both Jackie Robinson and Shirley Temple Wong (her chosen American name) adjust to new worlds.
The most fun part of the book is when the author, with historically accurate details, retells the adventure of the Brooklyn Dodgers as they win the pennant and face the NY Yankees in the 1947 World Series.
Before I could finish my summary of the book, Aunt Kay jumped in to share. She attended game 4, she told me. And it was pinch hitter, Cookie Lavegetto, who hit a homerun in the 9th inning to win the game. She was there!
Did I mention this took place in 1947? That would be 64 years ago. She is a 98 year-old woman. I was truly astonished. Sure, it was probably one of the most exciting games to see, and her love for the Dodgers then must have been true (for those of you not aware-the Mets did not exist then; for many Brooklynites, Dodgers were their team until they would up and move to Los Angeles- a most painful day indeed for their beloved fans.) According to legend, Aunt Kay will still sometimes root for the Dodgers even though they clearly broke her heart. She became an immediate Mets fan when arrived on the scene in 1962.
I am not sure what the “takeaway” from this afternoon really is. Is it about getting old? Is it about reflecting on the wonderful exciting moments of one’s life? Is it about a life-long love affair for a game?
I’m intrigued. If I make it that long, what will I recall? And with what details will I recall it with?
Aunt Kay is an icon in our family. She has outlived most of her sisters and brothers and several nephews and nieces. She never had children of her own and never married. Most of her life was spent working in a factory, taking care of some of the motherless children in our family, living with her 2 sisters and one brother, learning to cook around age 70, playing the slots in AC and Vegas when she was younger, and, yes, watching baseball games. I am not sure she has many regrets if any. Overall, she seems happy with life. Amazing. Truly. There would be so much more to write about her life. But somehow, it can be summed up right here. So here is my “Ode to Aunt Kay”-not an old lady in any way.
She told me she paid 6 dollars for that World Series ticket in 1947.
Uncle Vinnie reminded her today, that soon baseball would be over for her as the Mets wind down their regular season. Whatever will she watch? Why the Yanks of course. But she will root ruthlessly AGAINST them. And cheer wildly if and when they lose. Afterall, the Yankees ended up beating the Dodgers in the seventh game in the World Series of 1947. Guess who didn’t forget?????
I love you, Aunt Kay.
