Wednesday, March 2, 2022

 Wednesday, March 2, 2022

 

     I had a great night's sleep. My legs and feet were good on this morning's walk. I was out on that walk early because I had an 8 am arrangement to give B a lift. The first stop was to return the truck rental. The van B usually drives for Hawaiian Stage and Lighting needed work. After returning the truck, I drove him to Midas to pick up the repaired van. We had left early because I had a 9 am PT appointment. I dropped B off by 8:30 with plenty of time to get there.

    After my PT appointment, I planned to drive the tax documentation I received from Raymond James to Miss Kitty, my accountant. Since I had so much time, I did it before. I just had to run in and out to drop off the information. I forgot my mask, so I held my breath, ducked in, and threw it on the front desk. 

      I still had time before my PT appointment. I stopped at the church to pick up ashes for Ash Wednesday on the way back. I was told the 7 am Mass was over, and the remaining people were doing an adoration. There was no bowl of ashes available. At St. Paul's in Princeton, the priests made a bowl of ashes available in front of the altar with instructions for ritual. I asked Judy about it later in the day. I wondered if I had imagined this convenience. No, some churches do it. I don't know if it's the bishops' decision or the parish priests. 

    I had promised Matthew, the cement guy, a picture of the 'pillow' I wanted for the gravesite. I've been picturing it as a pyramid with a rounded top. No such thing. It's a straightforward wedge.   I texted the image to Matthew. 

      I was in great shape when I arrived at Rehab. "Watch this," I said to Katie and had her follow me as I walked around the facility, demonstrating my great stride. I hadn't seen her in a while. I told her the problem with my foot was coming from higher up, my leg, hip, or back. She showed me ankle and hip flexion exercises with a straight knee using my quads. The exercises felt great. My next appointment with Katie was in three weeks because she's working on getting her orthopedic certification. When I asked her what she would get from the course, she said, "Letters after my name. It's just a way of telling doctors I'm qualified to do that work." She knew it all already, 

      At 2 pm, I had Mama K's crew. Twin E was the only one who had a story in mind. She's the one who is the furthest behind in reading and writing, but her story ideas are alright. It took all of twenty minutes to get stories from all three kids.   I immediately edited them and put them in the post. As they dictate them, I think, "Oh, boy. This is going to take some work on my part."  Changing one of two words, or a phrase, was all it took. I was still creating these stories to encourage reading in the twins.  

  I spoke to Mama K after we worked together. She said she saw a difference in how all three kids talked. Their grammar was better. She saw a difference in 3rd-grade K's verbal expression. There was an improvement in his ability to communicate his ideas. She was not seeing a similar difference in the girls. She also said she thought their improvement was all a result of maturation. You got to love it. I work my ass off, and it's all credited to maturation. I've seen that over and over. I can sympathize with the parent. They would prefer to believe their children would achieve 'normal' performance levels without intervention. 

     I told Judy earlier that I thought of going to the 5 pm Ash Wednesday Mass. I texted her to confirm. She and Paulette picked me up. The parking lot was jammed. Judy got the last available parking spot, and it was an official one.  

   Every pew had someone sitting in it. Judy thought the church might already be to capacity, given the Covid restrictions on spacing. We sat in some seats on the north lanai (open-air porch). The sides of the church are sliding glass doors. On cool days, these doors are open. Sitting out there is a delight. This evening the doors were closed and locked because the air-conditioning was on. It was difficult to see what was going on during the Mass because of the reflection of light on the glass.  

   Our friend Karen was sitting in the front pew. She signaled for us to come inside. There was plenty of room next to her. We had to go to the back of the church and walk to the front. That was fine with me. I gave it no thought. I suspect Judy was not quite as comfortable. Karen was one of the lectors.   Walter on the piano and singing, and Deb on the flute provided great music.

     As we left Mass, I got separated from Judy. She said she wanted to check on her car to make sure it wasn't blocking someone from getting out since it was illegally parked. When I got to the back of the church where she was parked, I saw her car in the line of cars waiting to exit. It was very slow going. I had no trouble catching up with her.

    On the drive home, I remembered how Judy was there for me for Mike's five weeks in the hospital. She insists it was nothing. I believe her. My staying in Oahu and being with Mike every day wasn't a big deal. (I'm not going to say it was nothing.)  There was no way I could have done anything else. I had to be there for my sake as well as Mike's. Judy was available for me 24/7. I must have spoken to her many times a day and often late at night. I can't imagine having gone through that experience without her support. She remains an invaluable friend.