I promise I will get this back on a Monday. To my defense, I’ve been out of state visiting family in the beautiful state of Alabama. It was lush and green, the temperature a pleasant 87 degrees with a cool breeze. Sounds nice, right? It truly was tranquil. I loved watching the birds feed, quite well and very messily, from the feeder hanging directly in front of the window, while I sat with my sister, Patti, who swept the porch. As I ate my oatmeal and sipped my hot coffee, I thought, “Oh how sweet”, about the birds, not my sister.
My mom’s side of the family settled here many years ago. My grandparents, the Glovers, built a home and plowed a farm on their own land, many, many acres, with the help of their 15 children. Yes, all their own. My grandmother had 18, but only 15 survived. Hard times, home deliveries, you know how it was.
The house sat high on a mountain (well, a hill) at the end of a long (well, not so long) driveway. I loved that house with its swings on both ends of the porch and its dungeon-like root cellar, red dirt floor, shelves of vegetables and canned fruits, and yes, snakes. And who do you think went down there to fetch those items? Dare I say — ME! I spent many summers in Alabama, whether Dad was away on an isolated tour or we were simply on vacation. I helped shuck corn, canned jam, froze strawberries, snapped peas, you get the idea. I was also the one sitting on the “not electric” ice cream maker. And who fetched the mail from the mailbox at the end of that very long (not) driveway? Once again — ME.
This trip, my dad’s birthday was on the 8th. My sister, my sister-in-law, and my brother Mark decided we would eat at Cracker Barrel to celebrate. Sounds nice, right? Well, who knew the waiter was new and the food would take an hour and a half to reach our very hungry bellies? Remember, this was Dad’s birthday, his 87th! When my sister paid for his meal and asked, “Did you enjoy it?” Dad’s response was: “No! It was He!”. Dad has dementia now. He forgets things, he gets mean, and sometimes it’s hard to like him. But we still love him. We keep showing up. We keep seeing family. And in the midst of it all, there’s still laughter, memories, and love.
Your friend in Christ,
Paula
