The Last Companion
Jennifer has spent her entire life in the same NY apartment, a home sustained by generations of shared routines, celebrations, and close family ties. Raised by her mother and grandparents, she shared a bedroom with her mother while her grandparents occupied the other. They were rarely apart—church on Sundays, afternoons spent at the park where her grandfather read the Spanish newspaper while she played on the swings, and birthdays and holidays celebrated with a small party and a cake.
Her family prioritized her future, making sacrifices that enabled her to excel academically. Jennifer graduated as valedictorian of her high school class, then went on to complete a double major and minor in college. After graduation, a series of losses reshaped her world—she lost her grandfather, then her mother two years later. Jennifer remained in the apartment to care for her grandmother, taking on the role of primary caregiver. During that time, she brought home a cockatoo named Elmo to keep her grandmother company. Elmo quickly adapted, picked up Spanish, and now calls out “Jennifer” in a Spanish accent whenever he’s agitated.
Today, Jennifer lives alone with Elmo in the same apartment, with traces of the family life that once filled it. Her story is one of continuity,—sustained by love, loss, and the subtle imprint of family.
