And...

Went to see that dear girl this afternoon. I wheeled her out of the building into what they call a patio, which is a chain-linked-fence-enclosed area. There is a tree, thank God, right in the middle of all the concrete.
I grabbed an ice cream from the aide giving out the sweet stuff in the dining room and I fed her that while the breeze blew on us and the leaves dropped from the tree. It wasn't glorious, but it was as good an experience as we could share, I think. While she ate the ice cream I talked about the time she made homemade peach ice cream for me on my birthday when my oldest child was only a month old. I don't know if she knew what I was talking about, but when I say these things to her, remind her of things she's done for me, things we've done together, it makes me feel better.
We sat in the sweet, drowsy air for awhile and I talked a little bit to some of the other folks sitting outside. One fellow fascinates me. He doesn't talk (I think he's had a stroke) but he comes out of the building in his wheelchair like a bullet from a gun. Fast. Then he proceeds to straighten up the patio area. He pulls the tables and chairs into an arrangement that he finds pleasing. He does this sitting in his wheelchair with the use of only one hand. I'm always impressed with his ability to do this chore which I'm sure he finds some sort of meaning in. After he's done, he sits back in the sunshine and admires his work.
I admire him.
After awhile, we went back inside and I left my friend in the care of the nursing home staff.
"I love you," I said to her as I always do. "Do you know that?"
She didn't give me the response she usually does and I don't know if she really, actually knew it was me.
But she knows I love her. I have no doubts about that.
And I promise that I'm going to write about something lighter and funnier soon. It's just that right now, this girl is taking up a whole lot of room in my thoughts and my heart.
And that's all there is to it.