Open Door Healing

The last two days have been very emotional. Both days I went to see to my mom. Tuesday was supposed to be just a quick drop off of things she wanted, but it turned into a three hour visit. She had asked me what was going in everyone’s life and I told her about the quick trip Hubby and I had made to Dallas to my Aunt Petty’s memorial. I gave her a memorial pamphlet, and she instantly started to tear up. I then related the story of when I first met my Aunt Petty. She was from Panama and married my Uncle Alex. We lived in California at the time, and we picked them up at the airport, I was maybe 7 or 8. Petty did not speak a lick of english, and I did not speak any spanish. As we were driving to our home, I was pointing things out to her, “That’s called a bridge, that’s a building and so on. I am sure she did not know what to think of me! I told her if she would teach me spanish, I would teach her english. She learned english, I only learned a little spanish. Of the spanish I learned, two phrases stood out, “Uno mas cerveza por favor ” and “Donde el bano”. Mom looked at me quizically, and I translated, “One more beer please and where is the bathroom”. She broke out laughing, probably laughing for a good two minutes. I wish I had videod it. It was so nice to see her laughing. Not something she does very often. She couldn’t remember any stories to tell me about Petty. Which was sad. My Uncle Alex and Aunt Petty threw epic dance parties, mostly latin music, and one of my Uncle’s favorites was Herb Albert. Whenever one of his songs come on, I fondly remember my Uncle Alex. Yesterday I was at my mom’s with my grandkids. She had a fun time rolling a ball and watching them play with paper airplanes, and listening to them make up little songs. She told my grandson, “Well, aren’t you a happy a little Soul?” She used to tell my brother that when he was little. Her saying this brought up a memory from my step-dad a few years back. A new president had just been elected and my dad, who was a staunch supporter of this new one, asked me what I thought about him. I replied, “Daddy, you know I don’t think about politics, or religion or watch the news.” He asked, “Well, what do you think about?” And I responded with, “I think about kittens, puppies and butterflies.” And he said, “Well aren’t you just a happy little Soul?” and then he asked about my Husband’s view, and I laughed and said, “Well, he’s married to me, so he’s a happy little Soul too!” This got my mother to giggling, and then laughing so hard she almost started crying. It was a good cleansing laugh. The day was also filled with some sadness, for me, as she received a text concerning her dental appointment coming up, and she said she didn’t know why they were texting her, because she had never been to that dentist, and didn’t really need to go. She’s been going there for the last eight years, twice a year. And then there was the 5 minute discussion about taking her to see my step-dad over in healthcare, and who would pick her up and would they be able to fit her walker into their vehicle. In the last two weeks her mobility has gotten so much worse and she now has to use her walker all the time, even in her apartment. I told her if it was too much for her to go see him, she could take the day off and she said she had to go because she hadn’t gone the day before. Then I reminded her that yes, she had, because I gone with her. She didn’t remember. I also had several of the nurses stop me and let me know she was having a hard time physically and mentally. More so than usual. I am very grateful that I was able to bring some laughter into her life, and I cherish these moments, as I do not know how many more I have left. And yet, it is a new day, and my grandkids are on the way for another day of Grandma Summer Camp. So much to be grateful for. Blessings.