I just re-read the entry from yesterday, and it occurred to me that I did not give Mom's visit the proper respect.
She came from my home town (a tiny place in Colorado that doesn't show up on a map) on December 23rd. I turned my office room in our house into a lovely little guest room. It has its own bathroom and shower, and it's quite pleasant.
I went to the airport to pick her up, and I was startled to see that not only was she the last person from the plane, but she was being wheeled out in a wheelchair. I was totally unprepared for that -- I knew she had been having some knee and hip issues, but...!
So we got into my car, and she confided in me, as she tossed her three-legged cane into the back seat, that the only reason they insisted on a wheelchair was because of the cane, and the cane was from a friend of hers that said that if an elderly lady travels alone, she should carry a cane, so they'll be sure and take REALLY good care of her. She was right -- she was the first person on the plane, never had to carry her own luggage... What she didn't tell me was that she really did need the cane, and she was in a great deal more pain than she was letting on.
I had taken two weeks off of my BDJ (that's "Blasted Day Job" for those of you who haven't read my previous entries), which kind of gave me a weird indication of what they thought of me, considering that I had not even been at the job for two weeks yet. I wanted to give Mom my undivided attention, and the boss had no problem with that. Big change from 'The Studio', and I'm still not used to being treated like a valued employee, yet.
Anyway, Mom stayed with us for two whole weeks, through Christmas and New Year's. We had a wonderful time.. we went to see multiple movies and went Christmas shopping; my culinary genius of a husband cooked an amazing Christmas dinner, and we went to one of our favorite places for New Year's Eve. We laughed and played cards. I took her to church. I wish she had stayed longer.
I finally got to see her knee.. it's about the size of a cantaloupe. My brothers and I are working on her daily now to convince her that she needs to have something done about it. Never mind that she's in her late 70's... she's still a vital, healthy woman, and will kick herself for not doing it sooner once it's all healed from surgery. I think we might be wearing her down -- we spoke on the phone today, and she said she was going to make an appointment to "have it looked at" before June.
Thank God. I don't ever want to see her in a wheelchair again.
