The Elder Borrowers

Last night was the final regular episode of "The Baby Borrowers", although there is supposed to be a 'town hall' meeting next week to catch up on the teens. It's been a year since the show was filmed.

I went in thinking the idea of sticking the teens with elderly people didn't fit the show when I first heard about it. Yesterday afternoon, the local news showed an interview with a couple of the elders. They are all local. It made me think that the idea wasn't totally off. There have been touching times throughout the seriese, but last night, just about the whole episode played to the heart.

Each of the seniors had their own take on life and tried to pass wisdom the wisdom of their experiences along to the teens. There was the 90-year-0ld man who took Cory and Alicea to the cemetery to put flowers on his wife's grave. Morgan, who lost her partner a couple of weeks ago, cared for an elderly woman who talked to her about what it takes to make a relationship work. Sean and Kelsey also had a woman to care for. This one had been married three times, and not always happily. She also talked about relationships. Ironically, it was Sean who had the heart to heart with her.

One of the couples, Austin and Kelly, got an old man who was very vigorous. He had them up early to go exercise. They seemed to enjoy him and it made Kelly reflect on her own father who has been diagnosed with ALS. Finally, Jordan and Sasha took care of an elderly gentleman who took them to his home to visit his wife. She'd had a stroke, and he talked about how once she had taken care of him and now he was doing the same for her. I remember him saying he wanted them to spend another 40 or so years together. While she agreed, her face told another story. Whether she knew her health was failing, or she was just weighed down by being so disabled, she didn't look excited about the prospect of going on that much longer. Since the show was filmed, she has passed away and the program was dedicated to her.

While taking care of babies, toddlers, pre-teens and teens taught the potential parents about the responsibilities of having a family, this last episode showed them something about relationships and what makes them enduring. All the family rearing stages are brief when put up against 60+ years of living with the same person.

I was a little disappointed when we learned in brief where the teens are now. None of the couples are still together, though they say they are still friends. Daton and Morgan had even made another attempt at a relationship. I still hold out hope that Jordan and Sasha will get back together one day. The other couples had good points as individuals, but I think their Mister or Miss Right is still out there waiting for them.