"Aunt Thelma," my niece spoke over the phone, "My dad is visiting and he would like to come and see you and Uncle Howard." How nice! I thought, and asked to speak to this old friend we'd not seen for probably 50 years. He and my sister had been divorced several years, even then, but he would always feel like a member of the family for all of us. He still sounded like himself, his voice just not as strong as I remembered. We didn't talk long, but we looked forward to a possible visit.
Finally, it was set up for yesterday. I was glad I had done some housecleaning the day before, and enlisted my husband to help me finish making the house company ready. We scurried around with excitement, not knowing exactly when they would come, but they would call before the hour's drive from Wichita. Finally, as the day wore on, I tried to contact my niece by phone and internet, but got no response.
"What do you supposed happened?" I asked my husband. "Did I misunderstand?" There were two possible dates for the visit, and I had chosen Tuesday, yesterday. Finally, we ate supper, and I was getting ready for bed when the phone rang.
"I need to tell you why we didn't come down today," my niece said, "I've been calling so many people I forgot to call you. Daddy has had a heart attack and is in intensive care at the hospital!" Oh, no! How I hated to hear that! He is 86, but he had been healthy as far as I knew. His wife had died about a month before, and he was doing some visiting and reconnecting with folks after the confinement of her illness. He was talking of looking up family in Texas, too.
My mind went back to my first memories of Eddie. I was only 5 when he and my sister got married, and I remember him taking a nap at our house. For some reason, I crept up and planted a kiss on his sleeping countenance! Then, to my chagrin, he opened one eye, winked, smiled at me and went back to sleep.
Before that, he would show up at our house unannounced, walking down the country lane, smiling his shy grin and making himself useful on the place, chopping wood, fixing small items or just hanging around. Mama loved him. After the young couple's marriage, and for the rest of her life, he would call her "Mama."
As a newly-wed, he went into the Navy, and I remember them using some of his pay for Christmas presents for our family. I got the first new doll I can remember, and my brothers got tiny replicas of Navy battleships.
When I got school age, my sister begged Mama into letting them take me and send me to school. She had her hands full with a houseful of boys, so I was allowed to go. They bought my books, school dresses, and paid my fees. I stayed with them and went to school again in 3rd grade, and even for a semester in high school. It seemed they were always there for me.
The phone just rang with the news that his surgery went well. A stent was put in, and although he needs a second stent in a few weeks, the outlook is good for a successful recovery. In that case, we will be the ones visiting him, but that visit will take place after all!
No comments:
Post a Comment