Wednesday, April 22, 2015

The Truth Is Brutal And So Is The Run-On Sentence

So I did today exactly what I should have done which was to get on with it and let myself cry when I needed to (and mostly I needed to when I read y'all's comments, thank-you, thank-you, maxima thank-you) and I cleaned and tidied some and then the boys got here and then it got busy for awhile.
Owen wanted to go hiking which meant he wanted to take the tipi that Bug gave them outside and set that up and whittle his hiking staff into something resembling a weapon and get a backpack ready with supplies. The backpack part was easy as all he wanted was water and Cheeto's and the tent was easy because it's light as a feather and you just set it up by spreading the poles. The whittling was a bit of a problem in that I'd only give him a butter knife. But he did his best. Before he got everything settled and ready though, Gibson decided that he HAD to play in the water wiggler or whatever that thing is and I set THAT up and took off his clothes and he played in it naked until Owen observed that that looked like a lot of fun and he got naked and they played in the water long enough for me to drag a chair over, get a glass of water and my most recent Vanity Fair. By the time I'd just settled down into that, Gibson had had enough and was freezing cold and so he had be dressed again after drying off and given a piece of cheese and I got him cozy on the couch under a blanket to watch Tom and Jerry and then Owen had to get dressed again and that included putting his boot back on and that sucker has enough buckles and straps to adorn a strait-jacket and while he was getting dressed we had the best conversation ever.

"Mer, did you know that sometimes when people get really old they forget how to use the bathroom and have to wear diapers?"
I told him that yes, I knew that.
He thought about this a second and then he said, "Who has to change those diapers?"
Before I could even think about it I said, "Their grandsons."
He looked at me with horror, put his head into his hands and said, "Oh man. That is going to be disgusting!"

I am so damn impressed that he didn't just say, "No way!"

And after that conversation, what could I do but feel more cheerful and then Gibson fell asleep on the couch.


Owen finished up whittling his weapon and got his backpack on and went out into the yard to hunt animals and hike. I am trying very hard to let my grandsons be a little tiny bit more free range which means that I let them play outside sometimes where I can see them but that they can't necessarily see me. So I told Owen that he could hike and hunt animals in the yard but not to go out of the fence. I let him be for a few minutes and then went out to just get an eye on him and he was only a few yards from the kitchen door.
"How's it going?" I asked him.
"Fine," he said, poking his weapon-staff into the iron plant by the fence.
"What sort of animals are you hunting?"
"Snakes."
"Have you seen any?" I asked him.
"Not yet."
"And what are you going to do if you see a snake?" I asked him.
"Let him be in peace," he said.
"Good plan."

He didn't find any snakes but he did find some interesting insects which he wanted to show me. I asked him if he wanted to go see if we could find the snake in the hen house which I saw again this morning.


"Are you trying to kill me?" he asked. Which reassured me that he's not really that interested in finding snakes. 

After his hiking and animal hunting were over he came into the house too and we had a quiet hour while he played a game on the iPad and Gibson slept and I read some Vanity Fair where I learned that Kate Atkinson's new novel, "A God in Ruins," is coming out in May and that it's a sequel to her "Life After Life" and boy oh boy, am I excited about that. "Life After Life" was one of the best books I've read in years and I hope with all of my heart that this one is as good. 

And then Gibson woke up in a fine and cuddly mood and Owen ate most of his Cheetos and gave the rest to the chickens and Gibson ate a muffin and they both had some ginger-ale and then their mama got here to pick them up. Gibson was ready to go home with Lily but he asked me, as he almost always does now, if I was coming home with them. I told him that no, I was not, that I had to stay here and make Boppy his supper and he did the thing where he grabs my chin and kisses me many times and then he said, "No more kissing," and that was enough and I kissed Owen good-bye and Lily too, and they drove off and I was so exhausted. Physically, it was the easiest day but emotionally, I guess it had been a bit more difficult. But I drank some iced espresso and got in the garden and weeded out a spot where I want to plant cow peas and mulched it good and even girded my loins and gathered my moral fiber and pulled the mustard plants and fed them to the goats and Mr. Moon got home with chicken feed and scratch and a new bale of straw for me to use in the nests and here we are. 

I will indeed make Boppy his supper which is going to be a reheating of last night's good soup with some of the last of the greens and carrots from the garden and also the first of the potatoes and lots and lots of other stuff. It was incredibly delicious last night and will be even more so tonight. And I made bread yesterday with rosemary and Calamata olives and I'll heat that up too. 

Well, best get to it. 

Happy Earth Day. I have earth all over me and will definitely be needing a shower before bed. 

Forgive me if this is all discombobulated and weird. I've been heavily disassociating all day long except for when the boys were here and my brain's checked out, filled with cotton and mist and I'm writing this on automatic. 
All-in-all it was a very good day and I hope I didn't scar my grandson with the diaper thing. 
He picked me a rose later on so maybe not. 



Frankly, I hope to die before I ever need to contemplate adult diapers but we get what we get. 

Love...Ms. Moon


18 comments:

  1. Good gawd, jesus in heaven, what a wonderful day you had. If I was in charge of giving you wonderful days, this is the one I would give you today because it was a bit healing and you got lots of Love.

    But then there's the last post. If someone asked me how I felt about all this shit that happens to us, I would give my right arm to be able to say it like that. Because if they didn't get it from that, then they are for sure never going to get it and one could walk away from that hope.

    I haven't been commenting lately for the very reason that you wrote about but I am always here and you know I Love you dearly. My most wonderful Mary.

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  2. Liv- Oh, dear woman! It was a good day and a grounding day just when I needed it the most.
    I know you are here. I know you understand. I am glad of one, sad of the other. But. You are never alone. Love you.

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  3. I shared the diaper story and the "Are you trying to kill me?" with my husband and we had a good laugh.

    And may tomorrow be a little lighter for you.

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  4. Your little man's comment was hilarious. And touching at the same time.

    Your meals always sound so good.

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  5. I think I say this often....but, I love your life.

    The diaper conversation was perfect. And yes, we get what we get. But I also hope to get out of here before then.

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  6. Your reply to your grandson is priceless! I can't wait to tell my mother-in-law about it. She would have said something like that to our nephew when he was a little boy! Such is her sense of humor. (She's now 82, her grandson is 21, and she still has an awesome sense of humor. And a close relationship with her grandchildren, all of whom adore their "Grami".I love that woman!)

    And I'm glad you had a wonderful day and you're feeling better.
    Sometimes a good cry is the best medicine. That and a couple of adorable tots to play with! :)

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  7. Oh dear Lord, Owen's diaper conversation was the best, and I adored your commentary on it -- that you were IMPRESSED he didn't say that he wouldn't do it! As a changer of diapers of an adult, I have to say that it's really not that bad when you get used to it. Feel free to tell Owen that when he and you are a bit older.

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  8. Ha! I doubt the diaper conversation was very scarring. I too hope to be spared that necessity, but you never know, right?

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  9. those boys just crack me up. Owen and the whole diaper thing.they are so sweet and loving. my 18 yr old grandson called me twice last Monday. when he was little he always woke up before his parents and he would call me on the phone early while his parents were still asleep most mornings for a year or so. it's a good thing there are little children in the world to anchor us.

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  10. Maybe you won't need adult diapers at all. Let us hope for that.

    God bless Owen, fabulous child.

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  11. Ellen, that's such a sweet story.

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  12. Birdie- I feel pretty all right this morning. I hope never to forget that conversation. It was priceless.

    jenny_o- I am telling you, that may have been the best soup I ever made.

    Denise- I told Owen that possibly I would die before I needed diapers. He was quite torn about that. Bless his precious loving heart. I love my life too!

    Jennifer- I love it when I hear stories about grands who stay close. I think that grandparents can be really important in a child's life. I want to be that sort of grandparent.

    Elizabeth- If the topic comes up again, I certainly will!

    Steve Reed- Bring back the death panels!
    Seriously.

    Ellen Abbott- There's just something so special about this bond, isn't there? It's got a lot of magic in it.

    Jo- I will hope for that! I would really rather not have to have my grandsons change my diapers.

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  13. Those grandsons of yours are just enveloped in love.

    "Life After Life" was amazing. I am super excited that a sequel is coming out. I may need to reread the first though to refresh my memory. Man that was one of the rare books that I mourned coming to the end of.

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  14. Ms. Moon-

    Grandparents can make SUCH a difference in their grandchildren's lives.

    My mother's parents were like a second set of parents to me, especially my grandma. She passed away when I was 19, and she appears in my dreams REGULARLY. My mom says that's her way of visiting me and telling me she still loves me (and I'm sure I was her favorite grandchild! haha)
    Without her, I don't know how I would have turned out. Both of my parents had drinking problems when I was growing up, and her house was my refuge.

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  15. You have the BEST conversations with Owen! Oh my God, I laughed when I got to the diaper part, and also the searching for snakes part, and I needed that laugh that was just so sweet it almost came with tears.

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  16. It distresses me that you have a snake in the hen house, and it distresses me even more that you took a picture of the snake in the hen house. Now I'm wondering if I might have a snake in my hen house (and by hen house, I mean anywhere on my property that a snake might want to hang out).

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  17. That WAS the best conversation ever. And I loved that you put that answer out there.

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  18. Owen cracks me up. Great diaper discussion. He is something else.

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