When life takes an ugly turn, look up

Maimonides from a different angle
Cote St. Luc, QC
March 2019
This photo originally shared on Instagram

This is my father-in-law's new home.

Walking back inside during golden hour just before sunset, I stopped in the perpetually windy parking lot and wondered if anybody else ever stood here and admired the architecture.

Probably not. It isn't exactly an inspiring design, after all. More mid-60s, low-cost, not-for-profit-forgettable than anything else. A built-to-a-purpose box without central air conditioning or working Wi-Fi. A long-term care facility most of us might ignore as we walk past.

Its purpose as a place where residents live out the often-challenging declining years of their lives further reinforces its forgettable nature. In the time we've been here, I've lost count of how many residents have had no one come visit them. This is a place where the sights and sounds can haunt, where some people get left behind. No one's going to admire the architecture.

Yet here I am in the clear, cold fading light, staring up at the boxed form filling the impossibly blue sky. Because even the forgettable can have virtue if you take the time to stop and look hard enough.

Maybe I'm supposed to be standing here. Maybe I was meant to find the beauty in a place most of us would assume has none. Maybe the beauty we all seek needs a new definition.

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