Today is my mom's 74th birthday. Last year I drove straight out to her house after school got out to make it for her birthday. She thought she was 74 and couldn't believe it when I insisted she was only 73. We had to do the math several times. I had a good summer with her but I missed out on interviewing her on video. I had wanted to get several interviews on several topics but put it off every summer and assumed I'd be able to do it whenever. By the time I got around to setting it up last summer, she could not remember enough to answer most of my questions and I realized I had waited too long and gave up rather than push her to frustration. Most of the questions I wanted to ask her was about stuff I knew about but just wanted her to talk about on video. She used to be so chatty-- I had decades to get those videos made and never did. The weird thing was I had hints that her memory was fading since she would often ask me the same questions every time I called but I had no idea she had forgotten so much of her past-- not just details but general information like what she did for a living.
Every summer for the past few decades, I spent time with my parents and after my dad died, I spent the whole summer with my mom. Today is the first day of my summer vacation and I feel a bit lost. I realize this year marks a significant transition in my life. Instead of visiting my parents, my vacations are now about visiting my children. I spent my first day going to an early morning yoga class, hanging artwork at school, making stir fry for lunch and going out for cookies with Jim. It was a good first day, but I am missing my California excursions.
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