It's hard to believe that it's been ten years.
Ten years ago this week, a dear friend planned a party on Saturday for Bobby's 49th birthday (which was the Saturday before his birthday). Why he wanted to celebrate 49 instead of 50 I will never know, but Bobby had never had a surprise party, he was really struggling with some things, so I quit arguing with this dear friend who so desperately wanted to do this for him.
And then my Grandma died. Her prayers were answered. She died at home, in her sleep, and did not have to go live with anyone else like she feared and knew was about to happen. My little sis was out of school (she teaches first grade), was very pregnant, and stopped by her house so my nephew, who was 4 and dearly loved his great-grandma, could get a hug. No one answered the door, the blinds and windows were closed, and the back door wasn't open...all screaming signs to anyone who knew her that something was wrong. She called my uncle who was living nearby, and he came and went inside. I hate he had to be the one, and yet I'm thankful he was the one to see her peaceful in death after all the years he had to witness horrible deaths. He said it was as if she were still sleeping, but with a small smile on her face.
We were cell phone shopping that day. The pager I carried for Bobby to alert me when he needed me didn't work half the time, that perhaps I should get a cell phone too. We had some ongoing issues with the cell phone company, and what should have been a simple procedure ended up taking several hours. We were on our way home, near Crabtree (cell phone stores weren't on every corner in every town then), when I got the call on his phone from my sister. My family was a little irate that I was not "reachable" and after having dealt with incompetence and issues all morning just so I could have a cell phone, I was more than a tad aggravated with the whole "in touch all the time" nonsense.
My husband who never ever goes over the speed limit got me home in 8 hours...a normal 12-13 hour drive. I remember very little of that drive, but I do remember the hurt in heading back home, crying almost all the way to Atlanta on the way back, not ready to head back, but knowing we needed to be home for the party Bobby still didn't know about, and him being very kind about missing several days of work during the busiest time of his work year. We got home to bad weather, and my husband shocked me Friday night when we got home by telling me despite the freezing rain, he HAD to go to work the next morning. I tried everything I could think of, and finally had to tell him about the party. He was absolutely flabbergasted. He did go into work for a few hours before the party, and I think may have had to go back after the party (that part is a little fuzzy).
And I thought about all of that last night because he turns 59 today. It's so hard to believe that this is the last year before he enters another decade. I had thought about throwing him another surprise party I mean, who gets a party for turning 59? (That was his comment when he turned 49 and found out about the party.) But with the craziness of this last AL trip and me still not being totally well, I decided we'd go with just us. But despite his yearly insistence that a birthday is just another day, I think he's been pleased so far with phone calls from his family, and he did actually choose which dessert he wanted tonight (from a man who says "I don't need it" to dessert or "I only want one bite"...that's a big deal).
It seems unreal that my Rea-Rea as we called her has been gone ten years. It seems unreal that my husband is 59. That number sounds so old, and yet he's not.
Happy 59th Babe!
Ten years ago this week, a dear friend planned a party on Saturday for Bobby's 49th birthday (which was the Saturday before his birthday). Why he wanted to celebrate 49 instead of 50 I will never know, but Bobby had never had a surprise party, he was really struggling with some things, so I quit arguing with this dear friend who so desperately wanted to do this for him.
And then my Grandma died. Her prayers were answered. She died at home, in her sleep, and did not have to go live with anyone else like she feared and knew was about to happen. My little sis was out of school (she teaches first grade), was very pregnant, and stopped by her house so my nephew, who was 4 and dearly loved his great-grandma, could get a hug. No one answered the door, the blinds and windows were closed, and the back door wasn't open...all screaming signs to anyone who knew her that something was wrong. She called my uncle who was living nearby, and he came and went inside. I hate he had to be the one, and yet I'm thankful he was the one to see her peaceful in death after all the years he had to witness horrible deaths. He said it was as if she were still sleeping, but with a small smile on her face.
We were cell phone shopping that day. The pager I carried for Bobby to alert me when he needed me didn't work half the time, that perhaps I should get a cell phone too. We had some ongoing issues with the cell phone company, and what should have been a simple procedure ended up taking several hours. We were on our way home, near Crabtree (cell phone stores weren't on every corner in every town then), when I got the call on his phone from my sister. My family was a little irate that I was not "reachable" and after having dealt with incompetence and issues all morning just so I could have a cell phone, I was more than a tad aggravated with the whole "in touch all the time" nonsense.
My husband who never ever goes over the speed limit got me home in 8 hours...a normal 12-13 hour drive. I remember very little of that drive, but I do remember the hurt in heading back home, crying almost all the way to Atlanta on the way back, not ready to head back, but knowing we needed to be home for the party Bobby still didn't know about, and him being very kind about missing several days of work during the busiest time of his work year. We got home to bad weather, and my husband shocked me Friday night when we got home by telling me despite the freezing rain, he HAD to go to work the next morning. I tried everything I could think of, and finally had to tell him about the party. He was absolutely flabbergasted. He did go into work for a few hours before the party, and I think may have had to go back after the party (that part is a little fuzzy).
And I thought about all of that last night because he turns 59 today. It's so hard to believe that this is the last year before he enters another decade. I had thought about throwing him another surprise party I mean, who gets a party for turning 59? (That was his comment when he turned 49 and found out about the party.) But with the craziness of this last AL trip and me still not being totally well, I decided we'd go with just us. But despite his yearly insistence that a birthday is just another day, I think he's been pleased so far with phone calls from his family, and he did actually choose which dessert he wanted tonight (from a man who says "I don't need it" to dessert or "I only want one bite"...that's a big deal).
It seems unreal that my Rea-Rea as we called her has been gone ten years. It seems unreal that my husband is 59. That number sounds so old, and yet he's not.
Happy 59th Babe!
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