Not in Kansas Any More...er, Missouri
In the past 48 hours, I have been from Charlotte, North Carolina to Detroit, MI, on to Kansas City, MO, back to Houston, TX, and home to NC... WHEW!
Which state am I in? Why the state of Confusion, of course!
As many of you know, my elderly dad, a resident of the Missouri Veterans Home, broke his hip several weeks ago and has had a rough time of it. I hadn't seen him in about a year and it just felt like I better go again while I could. So... big_bad_man and I scrambled around and found plane tickets, booked a motel room and rental car and Tuesday drove a couple hours down to the Charlotte airport to catch a 2 PM flight out to Missouri. We got in about 5 PM Central time and drove straight up to Cameron, where the VA is located, to see my dad, 86. His Alzheimer's is pretty advanced and the stress of the fall, subsequent surgery and rehab has been hard on him. He was sleeping when we arrived but knew us when I awakened him and we were able to have a sweet little visit.
By then, BBM and I were starving and he was in the mood for some serious steak. We found a great little mom and pop restaurant (if all the cops eat there, the food must be decent, right?) where we shared a T-bone the size of a dinner plate, then back to the motel. We had breakfast at the same place - just as good as the dinner - and then picked up a chocolate milkshake for my dad, 'cause he does love 'em. When we got back to the VA, the staff had him shaved and up in his wheelchair, We visited for about 90 minutes, mostly about the past since that's what he remembers best. By then, he was visibly tiring, so we took him back to his room and helped get him settled in his bed.
The hard part was saying goodby and knowing this was probably the last time I'd see him. I knelt down beside his bed and put my arms around his frail neck, remembering the muscular mountain of a man he used to be. He spoke of what a good happy life he'd had, and I said the things I needed for him to hear - that he'd been a good daddy and that he is loved and cherished. It took every ounce of strength I had not to break down when I bent to kiss him one last time, and then I rose and we walked away and drove to the airport to catch our flight home. We finally got in about 10:30 EDT last night, completely exhausted.
While we really couldn't afford to make this trip right now, I'll always be glad we did. Pop may not remember today that we were there - but I will.
Which state am I in? Why the state of Confusion, of course!
As many of you know, my elderly dad, a resident of the Missouri Veterans Home, broke his hip several weeks ago and has had a rough time of it. I hadn't seen him in about a year and it just felt like I better go again while I could. So... big_bad_man and I scrambled around and found plane tickets, booked a motel room and rental car and Tuesday drove a couple hours down to the Charlotte airport to catch a 2 PM flight out to Missouri. We got in about 5 PM Central time and drove straight up to Cameron, where the VA is located, to see my dad, 86. His Alzheimer's is pretty advanced and the stress of the fall, subsequent surgery and rehab has been hard on him. He was sleeping when we arrived but knew us when I awakened him and we were able to have a sweet little visit.
By then, BBM and I were starving and he was in the mood for some serious steak. We found a great little mom and pop restaurant (if all the cops eat there, the food must be decent, right?) where we shared a T-bone the size of a dinner plate, then back to the motel. We had breakfast at the same place - just as good as the dinner - and then picked up a chocolate milkshake for my dad, 'cause he does love 'em. When we got back to the VA, the staff had him shaved and up in his wheelchair, We visited for about 90 minutes, mostly about the past since that's what he remembers best. By then, he was visibly tiring, so we took him back to his room and helped get him settled in his bed.
The hard part was saying goodby and knowing this was probably the last time I'd see him. I knelt down beside his bed and put my arms around his frail neck, remembering the muscular mountain of a man he used to be. He spoke of what a good happy life he'd had, and I said the things I needed for him to hear - that he'd been a good daddy and that he is loved and cherished. It took every ounce of strength I had not to break down when I bent to kiss him one last time, and then I rose and we walked away and drove to the airport to catch our flight home. We finally got in about 10:30 EDT last night, completely exhausted.
While we really couldn't afford to make this trip right now, I'll always be glad we did. Pop may not remember today that we were there - but I will.