There are situations that may seem harmless to many, but have the potential to create small disasters for others.
Posted at 1:00 p.m.
My father lives in a residence for seniors in the peaceful town of Mont-Saint-Hilaire. One of those beautiful RPA, with indoor parking and beautiful flower garden in a private courtyard. He lives there in a pretty little one-room studio since my mother had to be placed in a CHSLD, suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.
During his forced separation from my mother, he took up cycling. A way for him to get bored, but above all, to keep in shape, both psychologically and physically. It quickly became a passion.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE AUTHOR
Julie La Rochelle and her father Gilles
Then, time doing its work, he decided to spoil himself a little with an electrically assisted bicycle. To be able to continue pedaling, rain or shine, against winds and tides! You had to see him with his new car, his cycling jersey and his brand new helmet!
Since then, from February to December, my father has been walking the streets and cycle paths of our beautiful region, with a smile on his face!
We went many times as a family with him to walk the most beautiful green roads in Quebec. Something he hadn’t been able to do for some time since he was getting tired quickly. Above all, his bike quickly became a symbol of freedom during the pandemic, as it allowed him to get through the difficult confinement in RPA.
Yesterday we were talking about it, he and I. He told me how lucky and happy he was to be able to count on such a bicycle. Roll, roll, roll and climb ribs without batting an eyelid. And even pass people laughing, leaving them in his wake surprised to see him spinning like this on his beautiful bike.
I looked at him and said to myself how marvelous it was to see him go, he who, when my mother was placed, was no more than a shadow of himself… He was “alive”!
A premeditated theft
And then, this morning, he announced to me with dismay that he had just noticed his bike stolen, although it was padlocked. In the middle of the indoor garage, in a residence that is nevertheless under surveillance. A premeditated theft. Someone saw my father, from the top of his 84 springs, riding a bicycle and said to himself: hey, I’m going to steal it from him, it must be worth a lot. He spied on him and prepared his larceny. For resale I guess…
It must be said that it is not given. Several thousand dollars. A real small fortune for my father, retired a long time ago. Especially since with the current economic situation, it will be extremely difficult for him to hope to acquire a new bike quickly. And time flies!
It’s so cruel.
We agree, a theft is always something terribly annoying… but stealing from an elderly person knowingly, to rob her of what keeps her alive is utterly heartless. By stealing my father like this, it is not just his bike that has been taken from him. It is precious time that will not come back.
It’s a big piece of what tied him to life and allowed him to deceive old age with great pedal strokes, spinning faster than the wind on the bike paths of Mont-Saint-Hilaire.