Colleagues Mock Young Nursing Home Worker for Becoming Attached to an Elderly Lady – Story of the Day

John befriended Mrs. Nicole Newman at the nursing home where he worked. His co-workers mocked him for it, but he didn’t care. However, Nicole’s son found out and took her away. Months later, John received a package in the mail and was shocked by the contents.

When Nicole Newman was brought to the Palm Garden of Tampa, a nursing home, she became depressed like many other residents. John was assigned to care for her during those first few days. All the employees had a rotating schedule with the residents, but he noticed that Mrs. Newman was not getting better.

Usually, the residents would eventually adapt to their new living situation and start bonding with others. But John saw that this older woman didn’t. She didn’t want to try, so he stayed with her. They quickly developed a bond and played chess together every afternoon.

That’s when she finally started smiling. John was not the best player, but Mrs. Newman was pretty brilliant and taught him some tricky moves. “You’re getting so much better, John. One day, you’ll beat me,” the older woman said during one of their matches. John smiled, knowing it might never happen. But he was happy knowing that Nicole was finally settled.

Despite their rotating schedule, John asked to be assigned to Mrs. Newman every day, and eventually, he considered her like a grandmother. His co-workers, Mark and Frida, laughed at him sometimes.

“Hey, John. Are you having an affair with Mrs. Newman? Talk about a May-December romance?” Mark mocked as Frida cackled. Nicole was over 80 years old, and John was in his late 20s, just like his fellow employees. But it felt like he related more to Mrs. Newman than people his age.

Additionally, John never had a grandmother. All his grandparents died before he was born, and there was no other older influence in his life, apart from his parents. Therefore, Mrs. Newman started to mean a lot to him. But John knew that if he acted offended at Mark’s words, they would only harp on harder. The only option was to ignore them and hope Nicole never heard anything.

That Christmas, John discovered that Mrs. Newman’s son, Michael, wouldn’t be picking her up because they were going on a trip to Aspen. She was so sad on the days leading up to the holiday that he invited her to his house. It was hard to get the permit to take her out of the nursing home, but John managed it, and his parents were more than happy to welcome her into their house.

Mrs. Newman enjoyed herself immensely, and John became her confidant since. But she was finally opening up to other residents, and his worries eased, although he still invited her to dinners at his family house. John even took her to the movies at one point.

One day, Nicole's son called the nursing home and threw a fit. “John, Mrs. Newman’s son called right now and made a big complaint about you taking his mother out,” the receptionist, Melinda, told him at the employee break room one morning.

“What? Why? He doesn’t visit, so what’s the problem?” John asked, closing his locker and looking confused.

“I have no idea. But I’m guessing he doesn’t want anyone getting close to his mother,” Melinda replied, shrugging her shoulders and going back to her desk.

John asked Mrs. Newman about it, and she breathed a long sigh. “Oh, I shouldn’t have told him about Christmas dinner or our outings. He got so weird. He started telling me people take advantage of seniors in nursing homes. I told him he was crazy, but well…,” the older woman trailed off.

Both of them decided to ignore Michael’s complaint, but apparently, someone at the nursing home gave him updates about them. And one day, he simply took Nicole out of the facility, explaining that his mother would live at home from now on, and that was it.

That was the last time John saw her. They tried to keep in touch, but apparently, Mrs. Newman could only talk on the phone for a few minutes.

A few months later, Michael’s wife called him unexpectedly and told him Nicole had died. “I know she would’ve wanted you to know. I never agreed with my husband’s actions. Mrs. Newman was a kind soul but very sharp. She wouldn’t have let anyone take advantage of her. Anyway, the funeral service is tonight. I hope you come by,” the woman explained, giving him the address.

John dressed up and attended the service, staying away from the immediate family to avoid a run-in with Michael. Although Mrs. Newman’s son shouldn’t have known what he looked like.

Several days later, John received a package from Mrs. Newman. It contained her personal diary, and he sat down in his bed to read it. It made him cry his eyes out. She wrote how she started to consider him a son and how much he valued all the time he spent with her.

“I loved you, Nicole. You were the only grandmother I ever knew,” John whispered to himself, trying to dry tears, but they kept coming. He used his other hand to turn the page and suddenly, a letter fell out.

“Dear John,

Please, call my lawyer, Mr. Bergman, and he will hook you up with something I prepared. I’m leaving you a huge chunk of my savings. I can’t give you everything because my son would throw a fit. I didn’t know how greedy he was until he took me out of the nursing home he forced me to go to in the first place. But I don’t want him to have this money. He’s already getting everything else, and my other son deserves something."

"However, I had to do it this way to avoid any problems. Mr. Bergman will give you all the details. I hope you enjoy this money, and I hope you continue to be the wonderful man who helped me. Some people go into the business of caring for seniors because there’s nothing better to do. But you are meant for this. I miss you terribly, and I love you.

Sincerely,

Nicole.”

John couldn’t believe Mrs. Newman did something so wonderful for him. He cried some more that night and continued reading her diary until he fell asleep.

He received Mrs. Newman's savings soon enough, and her son Michael never discovered it. John kept the money for his future and continued to care for his patients. He met beautiful people along the way, but he never forgot about the Mrs. Newman, his grandmother.

What can we learn from this story?

• Some people are meant for specific jobs. John was meant to become a caretaker because he genuinely wanted to help people. That’s not always the case.
• Don’t forget your senior loved ones. Mrs. Newman’s son abandoned her until he thought someone else might take his inheritance. In the end, he got what he deserved.

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