I have a delightful female client who is 92 years young. She is a fairly recent widow and resides at an assisted living facility. Having outlived most of her friends and with failing eyesight, the days are long. We connect a couple times a month: by phone and then at least once in person. When the weather is pleasant, I’ll pick her up, pack up her walker and we’ll have an outing to one of several favorite lunch spots. During inclement weather, though, I’ll drop by for coffee and conversation. Oh, and I can’t forget the cinnamon roll! My office is located near Ross’ Restaurant in Bettendorf where they’ve been making giant—6” square!—ooey, gooey cinnamon rolls for over 80 years. My dear friend has a sweet tooth so I make sure to arrive at her apartment with a roll for us to nibble on over coffee.
Guess what? We don’t talk about alpha or beta or risk coefficients. But the time sure does fly! Bit by bit, she is sharing the gift of her story with me. I now know what it was like to grow up the younger daughter of German immigrants in Chicago. I know what her mother used to make as a special treat on her birthday. I’ve learned how she met her husband and how he proposed. I’ve had the privilege of listening to the stories of her struggles as a young wife and mother to raise four children while her husband traveled during the week. We pore over pictures of her grandchildren and celebrate their accomplishments. She is my client, but she is also a bright spot in my life. I am blessed to be able to call her my friend.