As has become the norm for my life- today was anything but what I expected it to be… I was supposed to wake up, handle some necessary bill paying, wash wallpaper glue off some walls, do some laundry, play with Clara, go to dinner with friends and take care of some chores around the house.
Necessary bill paying required a trip to my parents to use their fax machine (YAY property taxes!)… while I was there my mom asked me to go with her to visit my Aunt. My Aunt has spent the better part of the last 2 weeks at my Uncle's side as he battles cancer in the hospital. I quickly decided that wallpaper glue could just spend another day or two as the decor of my powder room and jumped in the car for a visit…
I'm no stranger to cancer and the effects it has on people… I saw is slowly take life from my Pap and I watched my Mom Kick Cancer's butt!!! I know it's not kind- and I know the helpless feeling as you just sit there and watch and wait and realize all you can do is Pray.
I thought we were going to offer a some hugs and a few minutes of friendly faces for my Aunt.
This was a good afternoon- vitals were favorable (YAY no fever!) and we got a short visit with my Uncle. At first I was struck with how he looked like Pap, even though my Uncle married into the family. His hair color had changed after chemo treatment, and he had traded in his standard golf polo for a pair of flannel PJ's. My Uncle had always been a pillar of strength in the family- to see him in such a frail state was a challenge, even though I thought I was prepared.
It didn't take long for some of his old spirit to appear! We walked a few laps with him around the floor. Lap 1 was met with cheers from the nurses- that brought smiles as we walked. Lap 2 he was still feeling good…
Lap 3 brought a flashback of childhood memories.
Side note: My Aunt and Uncle always hosted family Easter gatherings. This always includes an Easter egg hunt. You can't have an easter egg hunt with my family without properly warming up. Warm up exercises are always led by my Uncle. It's normally quite the sight and a tradition I missed this year!
As we rounded the corner to start lap 3 my Uncle announced, "This is a nice straight away. Stretch the legs. Nice deep breaths. This feels good!" I giggled. I pictured a room filled with kiddos taking lunging steps with him, preparing to find All the Eggs.
Lap 4 was a battle of wills- he wanted to keep going… my Aunt thought 4 was enough for now and Mom agreed. So we returned to the room.
I spent a few minutes talking with him. He asked how I was liking LCBC. We talked about my involvement with Jcrew and camp. He smiled. Then he asked about Matt. The smile on his face grew as I shared that Matt was also involved and loving LCBC. He was happy to hear that we had found a church where we could be involved and grow. Yay for being able to provide a bit of non-medical brightness to a rather dreary day.
We said our goodbyes and headed for home.
The chores never happened… the glue is still on the wall… I did do a load of laundry and spent some time playing with Clara… and I paid a few bills… dinner with friends was traded for a stop in to see the hubby at work and refuel him with some iced coffee…
For a not very productive day, I was beat, but it was so worth it!
And now I need to get some rest because this chic is taking a van full of kids to "The Sweetest Place on Earth" tomorrow!
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