Old Lil'

Old Lil’
 
Old Lil lived halfway down The Boulevarde in a small house with her husband. She was a gentle lady who like Mrs Jessup watched the comings and goings of the neighbours.
Old Lil could often be seen walking down to the bus stop and on the way stopping to chat to the locals. Many times she could be heard saying she had asked her husband to repaint the house. In anticipation the neighbours waited for the painting to begin but as time passed and nothing happened they gradually lost interest.
  All except Mrs. Jessup who was most vocal in expressing her disappointment that nothing was being done by Mr ‘Old Lil’, to maintain the ‘Look’ of the neighbourhood.
Over time he became ill and Old Lil took on the care of her husband. She could still be seen wandering down to the bus stop and would still greet her neighbours but she no longer had the luxury of stopping to chat.
 “ I must keep moving you see because I can’t leave him alone for too long,” and off she would go.
Mr Old Lil’ passed away and Old Lil lived continued to live on The Boulevarde, stopping to chat once more to the neighbours to inquire about their health, their gardens, their children and to share her plans for the future which included having the garden redone and the house repainted.
 
Old Lil became ill and after some time passed away. Her sad garden and unpainted house stood empty for a long time before a new tenant could be found.
 
The Young Mother who had often chatted to Old Lil loved the old unpainted house just as much as she had loved Old Lil. Every time she passed by the house she would remember the the gentle lady who had welcomed her into the street all those years before, who always had time for a chat and who never gave up on achieving her simple dream of repainting her house.
For the Young Mother it was a lesson about the power of belief and hope, of never giving up, of always believing that anything is possible.