Sometimes a phrase from a story just sticks with you.
We're "walking backward" toward the sun. That's what Laura Gao's grandma in Wuhan told her when Gao caught up with her. Gao wanted to know how her grandparents were doing -- they'd both contracted COVID over the winter and had recovered but were a bit weaker than before.
Grandma's answer made me tear up a little. She explained that If life is a journey toward the sun, youth run ahead and older folks -- well, here's how she put it: "The ones closest to it, people like Yeye [her husband] and me ... we're slowly trudging forward with our backs to it. We know it's there. We feel the heat burning brighter on our backs with each step. But we'd rather look at the people sprinting at us."
I'm not an octogenarian like Gao's grandparents. But I'm also not ... um ... young. As the years go by, I understand that growing older brings a double focus, looking ahead at what's to come but also reveling in the sight of young family members on their own path forward.
Whatever happened to the 'period day off' policy? In 2017, two Indian firms began offering workers a day off for a painful period — earning much praise but also some criticism. We wondered if this policy is gaining favor in India and beyond.
You received this message because you're subscribed to Goats and Soda emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002
