Fighting For Pop-Pop

I never thought it would come to this. Two clashing life-styles at total odds. Offspring at cross-purposes. Brothers unable to agree. And a dear man caught on the brink of understanding it all, but unable to grasp the depth of the situation. I think of the choices my husband and I have made over the past 24 years. Decisions designed to have little stress. Simple possessions that we can easily manage, splurging on adventures instead of property; memories born of time spent together not in memorabilia. This is what my parents taught me. This is what Pop-Pop taught my husband. And this is what we are teaching our children. The lessons well learned and appreciated by us have been lost on others. Not everyone in the "sandwich generation" is willing to be sandwiched, opting instead to let an impersonal institution care for the man who served during WWII, has been a great husband, father, grandfather, uncle, son, neighbor, employee and employer. A little balance issue, a little dementia, a few misplaced words are hardly reasons to institutionalize a man. A nursing home is still an institution, no matter what you call it or how you decorate the hallways or the gardens. A man can get lost there, without even leaving his room.

Change Is Good

Change is good, . . . right? I mean, change is good! The seasons change and it's a good thing, we get to see our world in different stages of growth (and death - uh, sorry). It's just that I've been homeschooling my kids for 7 years and I really, really liked it. It really has been the best time of our life. We had experiences together that were magical. Simple stuff, family stuff, educational stuff, fun stuff. I mean, I always knew I couldn't homeschool the kids forever and that things would change and that change is good (. . .right?) So, it's okay that my daughter is away at college and that my son will go on to the technical school and that my other daughter is at the public (yuck) high school and that Pop-Pop is moving in with us and that we will have to get cable TV for him and that we are changing our family room into a bedroom . . . change is good. The words to The Serenity Prayer come to mind. "Grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed; the courage to change that which can be changed, and the wisdom to know the one from the other, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen."

Amen!

Be Still

BE STILL AND KNOW

I AM GOD

Smile

This peaceful spot is in Yellowstone National Park. It's the Fire Hole River. The river is fed by springs that boil up out of the ground and run down a winding path. We picnicked here. Us, the wildlife, the peace, the sounds of the river rushing past us. My son had a satisfying meal of hot dogs and marshmallows cooked over an open fire that he built. We sat in the sun with the cool breeze blowing by. Nothing to disturb our well-being. Just at this quiet reflective moment my son let out a burp so loud that we heard car tires squeal to a halt, they thought for sure they had just stumbled upon a wild animal along the river. My son smiled, waved, got his picture taken and all was right in the world.

On Birthdays and Sea Monkeys

For anyone who is unsure that my family is crazy . . . this should clear that up for you. My 49th birthday was Sunday. We were in Ogden, Utah (don't ask) and I woke up in a lovely room surrounded by my wonderful family - free continental breakfast (the staff fills all the food items to "just filled" and it is their goal to keep it like that. Well, my 14 year old son who eats like a stravin' animal had the staff following him around with boxes of food to replace all that he took). Then my family took me to Antelope Island. Ever hear of it? I didn't think so. It's in the north east end of The Great Salt Lake. Us and about 12 others had the same idea of floating in the lake. The lake is so salty that you literately can't sink. I sat on my husband's floating body and he didn't go under. The only thing that survives in the lake are sea monkeys. Yes, folks, for my birthday I floated in the Great Salt Lake with my family, 12 strangers and a billion, gazillion SEA MONKEYS! Another memorable birthday - thanks family.

We are now in Yellowstone and it's magnificent. I am here with the love of my life and our 3 offspring. There is no place I'd rather be and no one I'd rather be with.

Geography Lesson

So, I have travel anxiety. Most people who know me know this, but not everyone believes me or takes me seriously. But the truth of the matter is that I get myself so worked up before I take a trip that I am near hysterics. My poor family puts up with me. . . . .but, wait- if they didn't make such uber plans, I wouldn't get such uber anxiety. I mean, how many of you can say you've been to Craters of The Moon? Or The City of Rocks? Or The Lewis and Clark Caverns? Or The Astoria Column? Or Orifino, Arco, Hagerman Fossil Bed, Baker City, Eblem????? What are we, a bunch of freaks or something? Who goes from New Jersey to WallaWalla just because a second grader says she wants to? Yellowstone, Yosemite, The Bridge of the Gods, The Needles Highway (can you say car sick?!). It's no wonder I get anxious, I live with a bunch of a nuts. . . . . . .well, they are fun to be with and I guess if they left it up to me we'd never leave the state. (Well, that's not entirely true, I do love the Poconos.) So, if you think of it, pray for me, we leave in an hour and sometime tonight we will be in Ogden and then at Hebgen Lake and then rubbing elbows with the elk in Yellowstone. Maybe Jesus will come while we're in Yellowstone and I won't ever have to get back on that plane ;)

Broken Bone Zone

My friend across the street used to work from home. He had an office in the front of his house which gave him a keen view of my front yard and parts of the back yard. He called me one day and said, "M, (that's what he calls me) I love watching your son play. He's a real boy, a boy's boy, a rough and tumble kid who loves dirt and tools (insert Tim The Tool Man grunt). I can see him playing outside sawing and building and climbing and getting dirty. You're a good mom, M. You let him experience the outdoors like a boy should. I really like that kid of yours. Keep up the good work."

I said, "O, (that's what I call him) I kinda' gotta' run. My son's arm is twisted in a funny sort of way. The ladder he built this morning was slippery from the rain and he fell off it. But, hey, thanks for the call."

With some wood, some nails and some paint, my son, with one arm in a cast, made a sign for our front yard. O could see it from his office window. It read, "Broken Bone Zone"

A Simple Request

So, my son was lying on the floor, crying, unable to stand up and the only witness is a four year old. We were away on vacation and had just decided to stay another few days. It was obvious something was seriously wrong with my son's leg. The ER doctors, Dr. Frick and Dr. Frack, didn't have a clue - they were little boys themselves, I asked one of them if he was on solids yet. My husband and the girls were packing up our little cottage and making arrangements for someone to pick them up while I was at the hospital making arrangements for my baby to have surgery. Dr. Frick held my son while Dr. Frack put a crude body cast on him with a bar between his legs. I was not allowed in my son's line of vision because he wanted me to hold him - I could hear him calling out to me - I needed to pray but I had no words. I found the hospital Chapel, a small room with a kneeler and an old wicker flower basket. In the basket were scraps of used paper for prayer requests and a pencil. I picked up a request which read: "A mother is in need of prayer for her son." I bowed my head and prayed for this mother, I didn't know who she was, but I knew a mother's heart, a mother's pain felt for her son. I prayed with all my heart for this woman and her son, asking Jesus to take care of them like only He could. Then I left the Chapel and found Dr. Frick and Dr. Frack waiting for me. The cast was on and set, my son was sleeping and a nurse would help me pick him up, a room was ready for us for the night, the surgery was scheduled for the next day with a specialist, an ambulance was hired for transportation, and did I need anything from the coffee shop. Wow!! I left a chaotic scene and came back to a calm one. Just then a sweet old woman came up to me and hugged me. She told me that she, too, is a mother and that she hoped I didn't mind but she wrote out a simple request for me and left it in the Chapel. So, all those words I poured out for that mother and her son were words I prayed for us and Jesus answered. He took care of us like only He could.

Flying

My son is 14 - and he's a smart kid. He just knows stuff. When he was 2 we watched the summer Olympics while away on vacation. He loved the high dive competition. While I rested and my husband used the bathroom (sorry, honey, it's just the facts) my son was on the bed and must have been thinking about those high divers. He got up and began jumping on the bed, gaining height with each jump . . . and then he dove right off the bed. My daughter, who was 4 at the time, watched in amazement as he did this. You see, he figured out that the Olympic divers used the diving board to spring themselves into the air, to gain height, to give them time and distance to do those amazing dives. Smart, huh? Imagine a 2 year old figuring all this out in his little head. This week my son had an awesome opportunity to fly an airplane. My son . . . in the air . . . at the controls of an airplane. I think he's always loved being "in the air." The plane landed safely and all is right in the world.

By the way, when he was 2, he landed poorly and ended up in a body cast for 8 weeks. The whole concept of landing was way beyond that of a 2 year old..........