I have been thinking about our aging bodies. Mine and my husband's. We make more noise when we get up. Getting up from the floor is almost impossible. I don't have any real lone term goals. As they say "don't buy any green bananas"
The last time I saw my dad, before he went into a nursing home with dementia, was probably the summer of 1996. I flew from Perth, Western Australia to Virginia for my daughter's high school graduation. I stopped on Oregon for a few days on the way. My dad, step mother, sister and brother-in-law, as well as the resident Oregon relatives were all there.
My dad must have been 80 or 81. I remember watching him walk. We were going into a restaurant to eat, and my dad was somewhat bent over an he was shuffling his feet. He looked just like what I would think of a someone cast in the position of "old man". It was so strange to me seeing my dad like that. My dad was often a scary guy, but he was strong. He walked miles every day. he stood up straight. Yet here he was, old. It almost seemed comical, like he was only playing a role. But it was also one of those moments when you realize a shift if the universe. The changes that you know intellectually happen to everyone as they age. But the reality of seeing it in someone you love gives you a jolt.
And now, here we are. Stiff joints. I have one artificial knee and plan on getting another one. Nick's legs bother him. He gets charlie horses. We make noises when we move about. The eternal clock is catching up to use. As with seeing my dad as an old man, in it's not a big surprise. But it is too.
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Easter thoughts. I remember when I was around 10, my father took me (I am not sure if my siblings went) to Easter Sunrise Service at Walter Reed in Washington. It must have been the early days of the Vietnam war. We stood on the grass near a big pond, waiting for the sun to rise. There were men on stretchers who were patients at Walter Reed, who had been brought outside for the service too. Not much else I can remember. I do know that I wore white gloves, a frilly dress and a hat.
Fast forward to 1981. The year Morgan was born. I was living with my in-laws because Courtney and I had come back to the States for the birth. Ronald Reagan had just been inaugurated, the American's who had been held hostage in the US Embassy in Tehran had been released. The cherry tree in my in-laws front yard has pink blooms all over it.
My mother in law and Courtney and I colored Easter eggs and Grandma Sherwood would go outdoors and hide the eggs for Courtney to find. They played the egg hiding game for a long time.
And I distinctly remember the pink petals of the cherry tree blowing in the wind, looking like a pink snow storm!
My brother had me and the kids over to color Easter eggs at his place too. I don't remember, but I might very well have gone to my sister's house with the kids too!
During the years I watched and cared for my grand nieces, we did a lot of dying of Easter eggs. It's just what you do when you have kids in the house!
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| Jessica with her colored egg |
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| Sarah and Jessica coloring Easter eggs 2008 |
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Quarantine behavior. We have been in the staying in place mode for about a month now. I spend way too much time on Facebook- although that isn't new. But I find that many of us on Facebook are experiencing the same or similar things. It's hard to keep track of what day of the week it is. Or the date. Or even the time of day.
It has been pretty common for Nick and I to stay in our pajamas until sometime in the afternoon. We are all thrown off. Most days I take a shower, but not every day- which I should.
This morning I got up around 6:30 am to let the dog out. I thought about staying up, but decided to go back to bed. I slept until around 9:00 am. When I got up, I showered and got dressed before coming downstairs for coffee and breakfast. Nick did too. And once we were having our coffee, he asked "why are we up and dressed so early?"
I printed out some page sized "Easter eggs" to color and put into the windows. That's so the neighborhood kids can have a safe egg hunt.
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| My shelter in place clothes! |
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