A Memorable Mix

Memories surfaced throughout the week. Our Bible Study Home Group hostess brought out a smoked pot Michael had made years ago, a reminder of the many Klaytivity uniquely thrown pieces he's made. In fact that same afternoon I gave away one of the remaining beauties at a bridal shower.

Good friend Gina was visiting from Mississippi! She used to be a regular at Stephan's Monday dinner before she moved far away. So many good memories and a lot of catching up.

That same day, June 10, marked eight years from the day our house burnt down. Gina was among the first friends who came to our rescue.

Our daughter took this photo the days following as we trudged through the muck salvaging whatever we could. It spoke of hope in the midst of chaos and destruction.

We felt truly blessed to watch how God cared for us through the recovery and rebuilding process. Exactly a year later we had an open house to share what He had done and dedicate our new house to God.
Son Stephan catered the event and made an amazing and meaningful ice sculpture--a phoenix rising out of the flames!

A mostly forgotten event surfaced as I was reading my parents' 1996 journal: "It will be 2 years in June that he [Dad] had his heart attack." He would have been 73 at the time. Perhaps that is why it was important for me to have a stress test. Thankfully all is well.

It was also in June, a year ago, that Mother lost the use of her voice due to a paralyzed vocal cord.

Thursday at 2:40 AM my phone rang and the screen showed caller Kathryn Hoyt. I could not make out any of what she was trying to tell me, but, of course, I understood that she was distressed. In the morning the night nurse, who had been by her side for a couple hours (ah, that's why she didn't answer my phone calls!), said Mother was hallucinating.
I canceled art club and drove up to see her. She was able to share the scary scenarios either in writing or mouthing. The images and voices were so real to her. By the end of the visit she was calmer and tired and understood that what she was experiencing was not real. She slept well that night. Her lingering fear that she was going "crazy" was dispelled with the lab results which revealed very elevated thyroid levels which can cause paranoia and hallucinations. When Rachel, the nurses' manager, explained this to her, Mother was visibly pleased and relieved! Hopefully the new dosage of thyroid meds will help. There have been no further incidents.

Rachel doing a blood draw

That very day was Writers' Day in Argentina. I read a few notes posted by a successful author I met long ago, "I celebrate the birds in my head. HAPPY WRITERS' DAY!" Another author's note referred to her calling as the profession of a lier. 

My fiction-writer friends amaze me with their prolific imaginations. I, however, lacking that gift, am bound to the facts as I reconstruct my early childhood. The letters my parents wrote in 1946 lay open on my desk for weeks, even months, as I pull out nuggets and paragraphs to include in my story. The photo albums are also readily available to illustrate the events I write about. 

I wrapped up another chapter this week about all the celebrations and festivities of that first year in Argentina, ending with a simple and lonely Christmas. I awoke that day to find a small tree, a doll Daddy had been saving for me, and a wicker rocking chair. I was very pleased.

We were so happy this week to get our reupholstered sectional back! Quite a contrast! Does it take so much more to make us comfortable in our old age?

I found an old photo with Daddy for my Father's Day profile pic. If we didn't know any better, it sure appears like I am looking at a cell phone!  Michael's response, "Some things never change."

Rebecca had a lovely Father's Day surprise--she got her Daddy back for the weekend! Matt has been on a job in New Jersey for over a month now. His birthday was June 10th. Over the years we've missed celebrating together--once it coincided with our house fire, a few other times we were traveling in the Basque Country. This time he was gone.

Rebecca had just had her face painted at the first farmer's market of the season. We love our town events. The weather was perfect. We joined Kayla and Rebecca at a picnic table and ate fish and chips from Payne's new truck. Yummmm!

Was your week a mix of memories and memorable events?