Thursday, March 17, 2011

Staggering - Who's Your Daddy

It was a pretty staggering day. Mother woke me up wandering by the sofa this morning. I watched her go into the den. She didn't come out. So I followed her and asked her what was going on. She looked disoriented and disturbed. She told me the heater was on and the TV was, too, and they shouldn't be. So I told her Daddy was up and was getting the newspaper. He came slowly into the room, and she said she just hadn't known what was going on and didn't think anyone was in the house. Staggering.

So I guided her back to her bedroom and got her medicine. For some reason she decided she wanted to get up and come back into the living room. The rest of the morning flew by with me getting their breakfasts, teeth glued in, etc.

In a bit I asked Dad if he wanted to go to the local hardware store with me. Sure he did. On the way he let me know he wanted to eat lunch at that place where those girls work. This meant a small restaurant where his sitters have day jobs. We drove on to the hardware store, which, lo and behold, was locked and shuttered with a sign saying, "Closed. Thanks for your patronage."

We went on to the restaurant where we discovered the bank had foreclosed on the hardware store. Staggering. I had wondered how long it would last when the Home Depot, quickly followed by a Lowes, came to Paducah, 25 miles away.

While we were eating, one of the sitters came out with a piece of chicken and some baked apples all packed to go for my Mom.  How very thoughtful!  Mom loved the apples later.

Also while we were eating, Dad told me (again) about where his father died in 1935. His dad was the undertaker/funeral director. He was killed by an automobile while he was driving the horse-drawn hearse. Then Dad asked me when I was born, and I told him 1953.

He said, "I just don't get it."

Huh? "What don't you get?"

"Well," he replied looking at me, "So who's your daddy?"

Staggering. Really staggering.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, that must be like walking into a brick wall. I'm so sorry. Turns the world upside down.

Your sitters sound like wonderful people. I'm so glad you have them to depend on.

Jola Gayle said...

I'm still processing it; still in shock.

My sitters are the most wonderful people in the world at this point in my life.