Once in a while, when trying to put things in order, I come upon my mother's desk 'talking' clock - a device meant to help the visually impaired.
During the last decade of her life, Mom was almost blind , as a result of the glaucoma disease, and could not see the numbers on a clock. So, we bought her a talking clock so that she could hear the time.
The amazing thing is that the clock kept telling the time some seven years after her death. I didn't know a battery could last that long! I had all kinds of thoughts about it, especially that there were other things that puzzled me. The fridge and air-conditioner both suddenly stopped working after her death, and couldn't be repaired; the engines were totally dead. It was as if these household items "died of a broken heart".
Anyway, her intense blue eyes stayed beautiful till the last moment.
Whenever I come upon the above clock, I turn to the music of Andrea Bocelli, the blind italian tenor. Bocelli was diagnosed with glaucoma at the age of 12, but he completely lost his eyesight , according to biography, after an accident. His music reminds me of Mother, especially that she had a good voice and liked to sing a lot, mainly cantorial pieces (chazzanut). Her and mine favorite cantors were Malavsky and Kossowitzky.
Your posts always make me think. Thank you so much. Regine
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I feel flattered by your words, Regine. Thanks.
DeleteMy father was also visually impaired. He had a talking watch which would crow like rooster!
ReplyDeleteIt's good there are devices that can help people with visual or hearing problems function and take part in everyday life.
DeleteI enjoyed reading about your mom. My Dad had macular degeneration and was legally blind as a result of it. We gave him a talking watch last year - if he pressed a button on it, it said the time. He so appreciated it!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting how her clock kept working and the other appliances just stopped!
Yes, it's a matter of pressing a button, and getting the time. I'm sure he greatly appreciated the talking watch you got him.
DeleteIndeed,Mom's clock that kept working, and the items that stopped - were quite a weird phenomenon!
PS: Your mama and that embroidery are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThanks. Your words make me feel good.
DeleteThank you for this beautiful post. I couldn't help but think of the song 'Grandfather's Clock' when I read it. 'The clock stopped, dead, never to go again, when the old man died'. Your mother's clock kept going, but the other appliances didn't...
ReplyDeleteI'm not familiar with the song 'Grandfather's Clock',, but there's a similarity - the two appliances died when my mother died.
DeleteThere are so many fabulous tools for such situations. What a great thing that must have been for your mother!
ReplyDeleteLuckily, there are all sorts of devices to help people with disabilities. My mother loved the clock and kept it close to her.
DeleteHow beautiful your mother was! Thanks for memories of her.
ReplyDeleteThanks , Boud, for your heart-warming words.
DeleteBeautiful eyes.
ReplyDeleteWas she part Yemeni?
She had deep, blue eyes, but the glaucoma reached them.
DeleteNo, she was not yemenite, only the embroidery. At that time, it was a fashionable kind of embroidery.
It's beautiful.
DeleteYou mean the embroidery? Yes, and it's hand - made.
DeleteNever heard of a talking clock. So glad it helped your mom when she needed it. Janice
ReplyDeleteHopefully, you'll never need one, but be able to read the time with your eyes.
DeleteIncredible about the clock and the appliances after your mother’s death. Coincidence? I think not!
ReplyDeleteQuite incredible, and things like that make one wonder as to the possibility of unnatural phenomena.
DeleteThat is so interesting about the clock. And of course how everything shut off when she passed. I think how I might need one of those clocks. I had an eyestroke during the pandemic. Such a wonderful photo of your mom, too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ellie, for considering my story interesting and my Mom's photo wonderful.
DeleteGopefully, you won't need a talking clock.
If I was blind or deaf. I think I might stay in the lounge room and sulk alone :( But our parents' generation were so brave and determined to live good lives.
ReplyDeleteNo, you won't sulk alone, but you"ll wish to go on with your life using every device at your disposal.
DeleteLovely blue eyes - we don't have them we are all brown eyed or near enough.
ReplyDeleteWhat a strange thing for those things to stop working after your Mother's passing!
The clock, well that was a good battery then.
My father was blind many years before he passed, he had Aged Related Macular degeneration.
I haven't inherited her blue eyes; my eyes are greenish. Sorry about your father. I suppose he was also helped with proper devices for his disability to see.
DeleteAmazing clock!
ReplyDeleteYeah, great little device; has enabled my almost blind mother to know the time.
ReplyDeleteYour mother was beautiful. I love Andrea Bocelli. I did not know that batteries lasted that long either.
ReplyDeleteAndrea Bocelli has some famous duets with singers like Sara Braitman ('Time to say good bye'), and even with his son, Matteo, and his daughter Virginia. Those who love his voice can listen to his duets on YouTube.
DeleteI had a baby thermometer where the batteries lasted 18 years. What a great invention for people who need it.
ReplyDeleteThat's amazing!! I suppose some batteries last longer than other, but not all batteries have such a long span.
DeleteLike another follower I immediately thought of My Grandfather's Clock (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNH7z8VlPGA) when I read about your mother's clock and how other things shut off when she died.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip. I've looked it up on YouTube and read the story behind the song. Nice song, and interesting story behind it.
DeleteMy mother's watch stopped at the moment her funeral began. That clock reminded me of a clock my father had, Perhaps I shall write a story about it. Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteI believe it's human that we attach significance to certain things preceding and/or following death of a close person.
DeleteSi a un ser querido nunca se olvida, a una madre todavía menos; y es normal de que haya cosas que nos la recuerde, y nos ayude a mantenerla entre nosotros, porque el día que esto no suceda, y llegue el olvido, entonces si que habrá muerto para siempre.
ReplyDeletePrecioso homenaje el que le haces a tu madre, que por la fotografía tiene cara de muy buena persona, y seguro que lo fue.
Un abrazo, amiga Duta.
Thank you, Manuel, for your kind and honest words. Most of us do keep and cherish items that remind us of our departed beloved ones.
DeleteWhat an amazing device that helps people who's sight is impaired.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Bill. Amazing device.! Fortunately, there are many helpful devices. For instance, sewing needles with big ears which make threading easy for everyone.
DeleteWonderful that your mom had a talking clock. I actually had never heard of one before.
ReplyDeleteHi Jeanette. It's good to know about it, but never to need one.
DeleteMy mother died in 1990, for the last 8 years of her life, due to diabetes and congestive hear failure and all the issues that come with diabetes she was legally blind. I never thought about a clock. I did buy her a walkman with talking books and my brother put a tv on the wall for her to listen to. thanks for sharing your story. and for the comments on my blog.
ReplyDeleteThe clock was reccommended , among other helpful items, at the visually impaired facility ,and it served her right.
DeleteWhat a great story about the clock and your dear mother. I love the photo of her!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Heather, for your kind words.
DeleteThis is a touching post, especially the clock. The fridge and the air con is a real mystery.
ReplyDeleteThis also brings to mind what one person asked/told me once. When it is time for us to go why should it be with some ailment? Why not just drop dead when the expiry date is over.
Good question, why suffer, why not just drop dead. Well, I suppose there's a reason for everything, but only God knows the answer, and I trust Him.
DeleteWhat a lovely post. Fascinating about the appliances, isn't it?
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Thank you, Sandra. As for the appliances, I would like to believe that they stopped functioning as a sign of mourning for Mom's death.
DeleteThis talking clock is amazing and the battery lasting so long is also amazing.
ReplyDeleteAmazing indeed, Nancy dear! There are helpful things out there, if only we are told about them and guided in the right direction.
DeleteA beautiful post in loving, cherished memories of your mother, DUTA.
ReplyDeleteI, too, love Andrea Bocelli. And, I particularly love Luciano Pavarotti. I was playing his songs just the other days, and, as always, tears filled my eyes.
Take good care. :)
How strange things dying with her except the clock which lived on forever.
ReplyDeleteThat's how it is, Diane. Strange things might happen both when we live and when we die.
DeleteThank you, Lee. Well, Pavarotti was the One and Only. Bocelli is a great tenor whose condition as a blind performer stirs much interest.
ReplyDeleteAn amazing device.
ReplyDeleteYour mother looks so beautiful in that photograph.
Andrea Bocelli is a favourite of mine.
All the best Jan
Thanks Jan for your kind words about my mother. Bocelli has done well not only as a tenor, but it seems as a father too. His son and daughter are following in his steps.
ReplyDeleteWhile I have heard of clocks like your mother's and also similar devices, the fact that it kept working so long was amazing, Duta. The fact that the other appliances stopped working was a bit eerie too. Thank you for sharing the memories of your mother and her embroidery as well.
ReplyDeleteStrange, unexplainable things happen, and leave us confused. I'm not the type to ignore them, but I don't always find an answer.
DeleteGood memories. That talking clock is pretty amazing... or its batteries,
ReplyDeletePretty amazing, both of them - the clock and the battery!
DeleteWhat a beautiful and useful item to have to remind you of your dear mother, she was beautiful! Sometimes unexplainable things happen when we lose someone we love and I totally believe those items did die of a broken heart, the little clock stayed behind at the request of your dear mother to keep you company.
ReplyDeleteCorrect. I also believe that sometimes unexplainable things happen, yet there might be some logic behind them. It's a matter of belief., and I am a person with beliefs.
DeleteWhat a lovely woman! I'm glad she was able to have the help of a talking clock,
ReplyDeleteThe talking clock was of great help to my mother, as she was practically blind in her last years of life.
Delete