Not making it up

This last month has been frustrating for many many reasons.. but the one that continues to stand out is how much work this roommate is for me. Yes, she is a grown woman. Yes, she is 73 - so young by most accounts. Yes, she has been living on her own successfully. So why does she seem helpless? Does she give up when she is near me? She buys groceries but wants me to put them away. She needs laundry done but doesn’t remember how the washing machine works. She bought (fill in the blank) which is now a project for me to figure out. After 5 weeks this I need I need I need I need I need litany has lighted up some, but the helplessness remains.

Yesterday she did some cleaning up down around the couch she lives on and produced a bag of garbage. I know this because it is sitting at the bottom of the stairs for me to bring up and toss in the can. There is NO WAY this bag of paper garbage is too heavy for her to bring outside. But in her mind if I can do it for her, that is better.

Not better for me. Better for her.