160102 Back In Black

On Sunday, December 20th, I got the call. My Second Mother had died. I dropped everything and drove 1500 miles (2400 kilometers). We packed all the wrong clothing and didn't sleep. We couldn't sleep there, either. My bed was a two-seat settee in the living room, and the house temperature was set at 75F (24C).

I enjoyed seeing my sister-in-law, because we had always been good friends. My fil was a wreck. Often, parents age beyond their ability to be stronger and sharper than their children. Children don't like to see this. Parents feel distress about this as well. They were married for seventy-five years, so I don't expect him to live much longer. I am putting money aside for another 3000 mile round trip.

My seventeen-year-old went with me, because she had to. My adult child cried because she couldn't go. She remembers her father's parents with fondness, but at three weeks to graduation, she couldn't just take off and expect to make up the school work in time.

Before we left, my sister called to say that a huge storm had hit Texas and was travelling towards us. It had already caused newsworthy damage in Dallas. Before we had gone two hundred miles, it caused ice storms in Memphis, Tennessee. We had intended to return that way, so quickly devised a different route. We continued south, because the storm was wedge shaped. The leading edge was north of us. As we continued south, we avoided it. I drove without stopping much, sleeping for an hour or two whenever I felt tired, then continuing south. We reached Mississippi about midnight the next day and slept. The storm woke me about 2:30 am, but it was almost nothing that far south. I'd seen worse rain and wind in a spring shower in Texas. When day came, we had sunshine. It seemed to take forever to cross Louisiana. We crossed into Texas at sunset and cheered. I slept an hour or so in Beaumont and started driving again at midnight. We raced through downtown Houston at the absolute best time: 3:00 am. It was 7:00 am and sunup when we reached home. Yes, Texas is that big.

Next time, I hope to have the elder driving her car, because then we can take turns.