Tuesday, April 10, 2007

"I'm Not Waiting Until My House Is My Enemy."

Sally, 87, spunky, active, seemingly one of the lucky ones for whom aging is slow and gentle, joked about really being in her sixties. She loved telling us her real age. She was proud of the years. We learned later, though, she wasn’t duped into believing she was ageless, despite her good health.

She lingered over all the adaptive and safety products in our store, touching, experimenting; studying their features. As we chatted about the wonder of a walk-in bath tub, the wisdom of adjustable kitchen cabinets and countertops, and the ease of a low profile stair lift, she turned and looked me straight in the eye. “I’m not waiting until my house is my enemy. I’m shopping for independence now.”

“I plan to stay in my home as long as I can,” she went on. I know I’ll have to make changes. I’d rather get to them now while I have choices.” Despite her healthy and buoyant condition, Sally was not letting herself get lulled by the status quo. Denial is one of our most brilliant abilities as humans. It also can be our downfall. Determined not to get caught unawares, Sally left with an armful of brochures, resources and ideas for the changes she would embark upon shortly.

People like Sally make us so happy we do what we do. She got us thinking about how we choose our products. While there are a myriad of reasons, let’s talk a bit about the stair lift. We shopped around a lot before deciding on which brand to carry. What struck us most about ours is how sleek a profile it has. Many of the traditional models are bulkier, more square. Because Sally’s house is older, she especially liked how little room it takes on the stairs. Our brand is made in the U.K. Believe it or not, the U.K. has some compliance standards that are even tougher than our own when it comes to equipment like this. We feel great about the choice we made. Check it out on our Featured Products page for more details and some photos. It’s a great invention, the stair lift. As Sally says, don’t let your house become your enemy.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I think it is a great idea to start thinking early about how to best stay in your own home. The pre-planning will really help your kids to support your decisions and desires.