A Great Day

Yesterday Hubby and I drove over to see Mom. I'd heard from my sister that she was doing well after having a rough day on Wednesday. I really didn't know what to expect when I walked in, so it was a very pleasant surprise to see Mom sitting up, her hair washed and styled, a smile on her face, and her very much aware of who I was. She looked and acted like the Mom I knew before almost losing her.

We stayed all afternoon, leaving for about an hour to have some lunch, and to let Mom visit with some friends who'd driven a long ways to see her. When we returned to her room, we talked and laughed, reminiscing about my childhood days, my high school days, and my life now. The friends from Michigan, who'd babysat me when I was a baby, filled us in on their kids' lives and their own. Somehow, talk turned to playing euchre, and Mom was determined she was going to play. Hubby scrounged up two decks of cards from the nurses' station, this after he sweet talked one of the nurses into giving Mom a hamburger for dinner, so we set about creating a table over Mom's bed. Then I dealt the first hand. For the next hour, we played Mom's favorite game, and she showed she not only remembered all the rules, but she could give me clues to what was in her hand to help me out when bidding. I marveled at how in three weeks my mom went from having her parish priest rush to the hospital to read her last rites to playing bid euchre.

Today, my sister told me Mom wasn't so good again. And this seems to be the pattern she's fallen into: one good day, a couple of rough days. I'm just very thankful I was able to enjoy a great day with her. We don't know what's ahead, so all we can do is enjoy each and every moment we have, whether it be rough, good, and if we're lucky, even great.

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