Grandma's kindness repaid - woman quits job to care for centenarian

Anita Robinson's love and kindness in nurturing her grandchildren was the motivating factor for one of them to quit her job in the United States and return to McIntyre Villa, Kingston, to care for the centenarian.

"She is loving, kind that is why I gave up everything over there to come and take care of her because I know that if the roles were reversed, she would do that for me, so I have no problem doing it," Robb said of the 103-year-old Robinson.

Having migrated in 1989 with her siblings, Robb noted that any one of Robinson's five grandchildren, who all reside overseas, would gladly return to Jamaica to become a caregiver for their eldest relative.

However, she took it upon herself because she had no children, so it was easier for her.

"She has been amazing. She has been there for all of us. She loves us equally, she doesn't have any favourites. She treats us all equally. She prays for us. You can hear her in the mornings calling each of our names out when she prays," she said of her highly religious grandmother.

The centenarian, who is now blind and partially deaf, is still full of life, which is evident in her voice whenever she explains that she has been a Christian almost all her life.

"I am a Holy Ghost woman," Robinson said.

LOVE FOR WORSHIPPING GOD

She noted that she always wanted to be a Christian as she enjoyed singing and worshipping the Lord.

"She loves God, she still worships even though she can't see. What I use is my phone at nights to help her listen to the scriptures. I put the Bible app on and through the speaker, she hears it at nights," Robb said.

Spunky, hard-working and energetic when it relates to God, is how Robb describes her grandmother when she was helping to raise her, her sister and three brothers.

Robinson, who was a helper for most of her working life, enjoyed cooking and sewing. She noted that she didn't have many friends and kept out of trouble when she was growing up.

"I live a clean life," Robinson said. Robinson, who will celebrate her 104th birthday on June 16, bemoans that the main thing wrong with Jamaica is the crime and violence.

"Too much killing, me can't take it. Mi want that fi stop and everybody live right. I like to hear young people them grow up and behave themselves, and seek Jesus inna dem soul cause a no them a keep them life," she said.