Getting back to basics was our writing prompt for the day.
You know that Aggles and I helped Mom move down to the "memory unit" in October. At Christmas we spent a week with her and it was hard because she was very depressed.
I'm in Chattanooga now and spent the day with her. Before I went over there, I said a prayer (new thing for me) and also I remembered Luci's words when I told her I didn't know how I would be able to handle the move in October. She said, "Just put your boots on and go."
So this morning I just put my boots on and went. I had brought lunch for Mom and me to eat in her apartment but when I got there she was in the dining room. All the people from her hall were seated around the table in funny hats with flowers, celebrating the first day of spring. It was kind of sweet, though rather silent. I took photos of everyone.
The man at the head of the table was new, and had been asked to introduce himself. He said his first name, and then he was prompted to say his last name. Then he was asked what kind of work he had done before he retired. He said, "I worked for the Central Intelligence Agency." Some of the people around the table remained silent, a few hadn't heard, and one asked him to repeat. "I worked for the C.I.A!" he said.
I was impressed! I asked: "What did you DO???" But either he had been trained well, or had forgotten, because he wouldn't give me the time of day.
Mom and I ate lunch, took naps (naps always more for my benefit than hers) and headed out the door to buy underwear at Belk. We had a time trying on bras. She must have tried on thirty. We finally decided the best thing for her was one of those stretchy running bras with no "cups." We walked back outside with four of them (3 white, and one green that nobody wanted on sale for $5 ). It was sunny and I was fishing in her purse for her sunglasses to set on top of her regular glasses. I had a sudden inspiration. "Mom, we should walk down to Lenscrafters and get you a pair of sunglasses you can actually see out of, so you don't have to pile glasses on top of glasses when you go outside."
We made our way slowly down to Lenscrafters. Ended up having to have an eye exam, of course, which was an experience for another piece of writing.
When we got to the Piccadilly Cafeteria, down ANOTHER long arm of the mall, it was after 7:00. We picked whatever we wanted as we walked down the line, no holds barred.
All in all, it was a very successful day. Mom was much less depressed than I had seen her in years. As we were driving back to her apartment, she said, "I want to thank you. You have done so much for me. Are you familiar with my two daughters?" Then she added, "...Or do you know them well?"
Our day had gone so well that it didn't matter. I could tell she was happy, and to me that's the basics.
