“Would it be okay to bring supper over for you and Mary Ann?”  I was sitting by the phone and answered quickly.  Maybe it was a premonition.  Not really.  That is not part of my understanding of reality.  It was however a very pleasing phone conversation.

Then at about 5pm, the phone rang again: “Just a heads up, we are on our way.”  Shari and Martin are among the most thoughtful and generous people I know.  I would be hard pressed to name all the people between them they have helped out in one way or another.  They help with their time and attention.  They accommodate their busy schedules, they are both professionals working full time, to the schedules of those they help whenever possible.  I have no idea how they do it, but we are greatful at our house that they do it.

It was not just any food.  Shari checked one of the last church cookbooks to find recipes Mary Ann had provided when the book was produced.  That way she was sure Mary Ann and I would like what she and Martin brought.  Mary Ann loved it and ate more voraciously than has been her recent norm.  Catalina Chicken (Mary Ann’s recipe), baked potatoes, corn, a freshly baked loaf of bread, a hot rhubarb pie (Mary Ann’s recipe), and vanilla ice cream to have with the pie.  All of it was piping hot (except for the ice cream) and ready to eat.

That makes twice in three days, since Edie and Daughter Gretchen brought over part of the midday meal they had prepared on Saturday, a very tasty Taco Salad with wonderful and creative toppings.  They stopped by to show Mary Ann some quilts that Edie’s Sister had made.  It was a treat for Mary Ann to look at the fabrics used and the patterns and the stitching and the colors.  Norma likes best piecing the quilt tops.  Mary Ann also enjoyed that the most in the process of making quilts.  I remembered enough of the jargon from those years to recall out loud some of her experiences.  There was the first quilt, a Sampler Quilt, hand quilted over the span of two years.  There were the six baby quilts Mary Ann brought out and put in front of Becky when she was pregnant with our first Grandchild, Chloe (who, by the way, is also Son Micah and Becky’s Daughter — you Grandparents catch my drift).  Mary Ann clearly moved back to those days as she examined and handled the quilts, even if there were few words.  The quilts were strikingly beautiful.  The quilts, lunch and a pot of flowers, Gretchen had put together provided us with a very bright day in spite of the lingering fog outside.

Tamara came over tonight to spend time with Mary Ann.  She had been sick a number of weeks ago and had not been able to visit in a long time.  Mary Ann had a refreshing break from me, and I was able to get done some things in my office that demanded uninterrupted attention.  Not only that, but two more people have taken slots in the next two weeks to allow me to connect with others and give Mary Ann the stimulation of communicating with people outside of our little, confined world.

Mary Ann has been doing reasonably well in the past couple of days.  Saturday night was not the best for sleep, and tonight she just said the raccoons have returned.  I told her that there has been not trace of them in many weeks outside.  The snow would have immediately revealed evidence of their presence.  She was not convinced.  On the contrary, she simply said, “Well, two raccoons have returned!”  That does not bode well for tonight’s hope for very many hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Well, I had best get to bed.  Tomorrow will be an early day, since the Bath Aide was off for Martin Luther King Day.  I will need to get Mary Ann’s hair washed in the morning before her Tuesday morning group at church.  She was not up to going last week.  I hope she goes tomorrow.  She really enjoys that group of good friends.  They have a love and concern for her that warms my heart.

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