Family

I spent yesterday with family that I haven't seen in a while. In many ways, I was reminded of why I don't see them often.

I actually went to visit my grandfather, who has been in a nursing home for over 8 years following a stroke. He was not doing well, despite my father telling me that my grandfather was doing better yesterday than he had been the day before. I really went to tell my grandfather goodbye. This was really to provide me with closure more than anything else. He is not cognizant enough to really notice that I was there. I'm glad I went. The next time I go up there will probably be for a funeral.

My grandmother (aka Granny) was happy to see me, and I was just as happy to see her again. She is a lot of fun, most of the time. That is, she is a lot of fun when she isn't busy trying to beat you over the head with Jesus. Most of our time was spent talking about family and touring our hometown of Sanford. The tour was mostly for my husband Roy's benefit, because he had been to Sanford in the past but had never taken a guided tour of it. We went downtown, past Lake Monroe, through the old Swedish neighborhood, and to the cemetery where our family is buried. We also saw the house where Granny was born, an old bungalow built in 1922. That was nice. I want to visit Granny again soon.

We visited my great uncle Sonny. He is now in a nursing home, but he is there because needs help taking care of himself. He is not in the same nearly-vegetative state as my grandfather. He actually seems to enjoy living there. All he needs is some music, he prefers the old crooners, and his Oz books.

My father is a different story. He is a very angry man, and he was less than pleased to see me. I will be spending as little time with him as possible in the future. Actually, I feel really bad for him. He was a teacher for over 30 years, but he never learned to be happy with himself. Now, he has aged much too fast, and he looks older than my 71-year-old husband does. Sad.

I guess other people have normal families. I have this one.