I Don’t Think That’s How That Works…

When Mom was first diagnosed the doctor anticipated drastic hair loss as a chemotherapy side-effect. Thus, he gave her a prescription for a wig but the script read “cranial prosthesis.” Um… Is it just me or does that sound a bit like an artificial brain implant? lol She never lost her hair so the “cranial prosthesis” wasn’t necessary which is great because she HATED the thought of wearing it, although we had some laughs trying it on in her behalf. Unlike Mom her sister, Mal, has always been the artsy one, which included every form of hair-styling and makeup. Those of you who have been friends with Mom since the early 90’s will remember the only makeup I’ve ever known her to wear: 1 color of Cover Girl blue eye shadow, Maybelline mascara (you know the one-green and pink bottle) and the same color of mauveish lipstick. She even gave up the first two somewhere during my adolescence. Frankly, she never needed it any way, but that’s not news to anyone.

Family vacations, like the one we had last week, always spur on rehashing of memories from our childhood. One that came up was when we went to visit friends in Florida as kids. Mind you, the trip was great! We have very fond memories of fresh cotton candy and homemade corn dogs! Yummm! However, if you’ve ever been to Florida, USA you’ll recognize the pungent aroma the water produces! Its sulfur. Pure sulfur. You all know, “our family is politically correct and subtle”- Ben. *waves sarcasm flag* As you would expect, Ben and I approached this discomfort with great decorum… Not! I remember not wanting to take a bath because I thought the water wouldn’t make me clean and I’m certain I didn’t hold my opinion in silence! (Mom made me take a bath anyway.) Ben, not surprisingly, had a more genius plan. He chose to don a scuba mask for his turn in the tub. I wish we had a photo of that! He continues to utilize that ingenuity today! I’m not sure if he gets that from Mom or Dad. Hmmm…

Mom has this habit of saying “ain’t nothin’ wrong with me!” because to look at her, you’d think she’s A-OK! The other day, quoting Mom, Ben jump-started the following interchange:
Ben: Ain’t nothin’ wrong with you!
Mom: You want it? You can have some of this!
Beff: He ain’t got the right parts!
Dad: Neither does she anymore! DOFL

As this disease progresses, intense pain is an unfortunate but inevitable side effect. Mom’s doctor recently prescribed a time-release pain medication. We were discussing how that might work and Mom joked that it probably sends a little computer into your system that dispatches the pain relief – “You next. Now you. It’s your turn… etc.” Then she said “I don’t think that’s how that works”, quoting a friend of ours. And now whenever you hear someone say that you’ll think of little microscopic computers directing the pain killers to attack! Sounds like cooties to me! Dad would say “Ew! Don’t say cooties!” but those little boogers do their job! Here’s hoping they continue to keep Mom as comfortable as possible in the coming months!

It would not be much of a universe if it wasn’t home to the people you love. – Stephen Hawking

In this type of situation questions are common, so I’m told. I, indeed, have questions. In fact, I have ALL of the questions. Though death, aka “Enemy #1”, is not the normal that God intended for us it has become our new normal… for now. (1 Corinthians 15:26) I don’t wish to experience both sides but I’m curious; which is worse? Losing a loved one unexpectedly or knowing in advance a loved one is going to die, and possibly when? The latter provides the opportunity to say the things you might have left unsaid and therefore have less regrets. Whereas the former saves you months of replaying questions in preparation of the loss of your family member. I think about all the times I’m going to need Mom’s expert and balanced advice and part of me wants to start prepping by refraining from seeking her feedback and the other part of me wants to ask her ALL the questions now so I don’t leave anything out! I legitimately don’t know which is worse, just like the two options of losing someone. All-in-all, I’m guessing neither is better in the long run. That’s where our hope comes in handy. Our God has provided us the comfort we need to keep our faith in that hope strong! (Isaiah 61:1, 2) I’ll have an eternity to seek the answers I need and from a perfect mother! Although she’s pretty much the nearest I’ve known to perfect and that’s a fact!

We are currently in the process of preparing Mom & Dad’s new house up here. Thanks to some absolutely incredible friends we will have it ready in two weeks or less, despite challenges like no electricity! That’s almost INCONCEIVABLE! 🙂 But in this loving family we are privileged to be a part of, it’s not unbelievable. I tried to thank my friends (who made painting the house more fun than a chore) and one retorted “We aren’t here for you. We’re here because we love Luci.” The others announced their agreement. Some of them barely know her and already they love her more than me! I suppose I should be surprised. I’m not.

In Lowe’s the other day Kim, Mom & I were picking out locks, [two variations of beige] paint and other details when we passed stacks of buckets. Kim asked Mom “Do you need any buckets?” Like a released spring Mom quipped back “Well, if I’m going to kick the bucket I need one to kick.” We laughed but we didn’t buy a bucket. Too Soon? 🙂

Some perceive sarcasm to be scathing and hurtful but our family views it as a warm hug (since we hate human contact anyway) and somewhere deep down I think we’ll have a form of this humor in the new earth we’re awaiting as it will be “just a little while longer”. (Psalm 37:10)