So I do actually pray in the swing at night after dark. I face the house, and can, from time to time see my people in the windows. Squeak, squeak...off I go. (All the best swings are noisy, it seems.) And with both houses on either side of us vacant, it's nice to be making racket and nobody caring. There are advantages to having empty houses about...never thought I'd say that.
Sometimes swing time is the only quiet I get in a given day. Interruptions are the norm. Morning tea before everyone gets moving is my other time, if I get up early enough. I tend to not be an early riser, though.
I'm craving that time tonight. My nerves are frayed. Days at my mom's house tend to break my heart. She's so grateful for everything we do for her. Her needs are simple, but her gratitude pains me.
The least one called her this morning, to make sure she needed help, and to ask what she needed at the store, and to check if she wanted to bathe. When she hung up, the least one said it was like talking to a different grandmother, and this isn't the first time she's said this. Said my mom sounded so sweet, which we're still getting used to, even after almost a year since her stroke. Sadly, my mom has a former reputation for harshness and snippiness, many times to my girls. That's gone now, which is wonderful, but at what price?
Tomorrow the girls and I will go to Michael's for middle daughter to spend her dog-sitting money for a Smash book with the 50% off coupon I have on my phone. And she wants to get a pair of jeans at the thrift store as well. And oldest daughter is treating all of us to lunch out. Much needed, all of it.
I don't have sisters, but 3 girls who enjoy having me about. How's that for a blessing?
