When I Left Home It Was Still Summer

When I left home almost two weeks ago to be with my dad at the hospital, it was summer here. The temperatures were warm and the soybeans in the field next to our house were still green with just a hint of brown. Ten days later, the temperatures were cool and the field is brown and close to harvest. Now it's Fall.

Mom continues to be in the hospital two weeks after her stroke, but last week was moved to a rehabilitation floor in the hospital. She is getting more therapy (physical, occupational and speech), which will hopefully let her be able to do some things for herself. My sister says she sees some significant changes in Mom. I have a hard time seeing that. But I haven't seen her since she's been having more intense therapy, so maybe I will see those changes when I next see her. Mom has a long road ahead of her. And to make things more difficult, she's also dealing with Congestive Heart Failure. It is so hard for me to see her like this. She seems to understand a lot of things, but cannot communicate.(I grieve that I will not be able to have a conversation with my mom again.) She recognizes family and friends and the (half) smile she gives is a gift to see. Everyone in my family has been to visit (except two grandsons-in-law). It's heartbreaking to see each one of us realize that our mom and grandma will never be the same.

After I spent six days with my dad and mom, I went to Iowa City to meet a friend for a few days. (We had planned this at the beginning of the month.) (We first met about 25 years ago. She and her husband are missionaries in Budapest, so we don't see each other very often.)

We rented a hotel room that had two bedrooms and two baths and a living room/kitchen area. It was such a nice arrangement and we enjoyed a couple of days of girl stuff: sleeping in, talking, eating out, talking, shopping, talking, watching TV, talking. Well, you get the idea.  And I even threw in some bonus tours (I lived in Iowa City from age 4 to age 11) of my childhood neighborhood (we even visited with some neighbors that still live there) and other highlights like: the pool where I got the scar on my forehead, where I went to elementary school, the church we attended, where my dad used to work, blah, blah, blah.

I had originally planned on coming back home last Wednesday, but I decided to stay in Iowa City an extra day. I enjoyed a day all by myself (an introvert's dream) and spent it wandering around Hobby Lobby, getting a pedicure and finding a funky place for lunch.

I stopped to see my mom for a few more hours on Thursday before I finally headed back north for home. It's been good to sleep in my own bed and wash the summer clothes I had in my suitcase. Time to get out the fall clothes.