Gut Wrenching

I like to have fun here when celebrities pass away. They are easy targets and there is no collateral damage because we don’t really know these folks although the media acts like we do. It is different when someone close passes. You feel it in your core and it throws off your equilibrium. My father’s brother, William, Uncle Bill, has now moved on to his meeting with the Great Divine. He has gone on to join the ever growing circle of family celebrities that are doing their own version of a swarp in the great beyond. I bet he’s doing Mr. Bojangles on the harmonica as I write this. Our grief grows exponentially as the circle here on earth gets tighter and tighter. Here’s to you Uncle Bill! Say hey to the rest of the gang, especially Dad.

Renee started work this week at the pre-school. No kiddies yet as they don’t start until next week. She survived pretty well but last night was complaining of sharp pains from her lower abdomen. We’re not sure if it’s too much too soon or some other cause.

Stress maybe? We do have a house full of Renee’s family. Yes, the whole crew is here awaiting the arrival of the moving truck so they may move in to their new house just minutes away. Her mother, father, brother and grandmother are all here, four generations under one roof.

The level of care needed for “Other Nana” has increased dramatically since the last time we saw her in the Spring. She’s in her own world most of the time and can create the most elaborate stories of what is happening. Any novelist would be jealous of her flair for fiction, only she doesn’t realize it isn’t true. Physically, she is as bad, or worse, than her mental state. She is in need of supervision 24/7 and you can see the toll it is taking on all involved in tending to her needs. It is real work and despite best intentions has surpassed the abilities of Renee’s parents of handling this on their own. Professional care takers and facilities are being researched as I write.

Renee is still complaining of the pains in her gut and I can hear her saying “Ew, Ow, Ow, Ouch” from the other room. There is no visible indication of what is causing the pain and guess what? It is the weekend. This stuff always happens on the weekend. It is probably another knot, this time internal. This is the same post-op timeframe that her adhesions from her kidney surgery doubled her over – that was a Saturday too – so I’m watching this closely. I’m hoping it is nothing more than routine disruption stress from the whole family move thing and it will pass when the moving truck arrives. Until Monday I’ll be keeping the tool box with the big gut wrench at the ready.