I am on facebook. A couple days ago I was notified of a friend who was having a birthday, so I clicked on the "wish her the best" button and sent her a happy birthday wish. Yesterday I got a message from her daughter that she had passed away 4 months ago. Of course I had been meaning to call her. Mother always said "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." And of course momma was right.
So in my inimitable way, I looked for someone else to blame for my neglect of my friend. Blame it on Covid. Blame it on my having a 4 year old to take care of while his daddy works. Blame it on the Pueblo Chieftain for raising the price of a subscription so high that I can not afford the paper and thus can not read the obituaries.
Darn! It seemed that only last week I had seen her at Walgreens and we talked about lunch. Her step daughter and I were friends. But as I set here thinking back, I do not know the last time I seen her! It was not this summer, or last summer. Maybe 3 summers ago. Nope! Longer than that. She does not know Bret has a son and that son is now almost 5 years old! Damn! I am not sure she even knew about Sherman and he passed in 2012!
A lot of my problem is this damned pandemic! I could always keep track of time because I attended church every Sunday and that started my week. My church has been closed since March, so there is no longer a start to my week. The days just run together. Monday and Tuesday are Bret's days off, so if he is hanging around the house during the day, I know it is Monday or Tuesday. After that it is all down hill. I may have to actually go find a church that will let me in just so I know what day it is.
Now I am setting here realizing that I am suddenly old. My life is marked by milestones. There is the period before Kenny. That is anything prior to 1980. Then there is life after Kenny. That is 2003. And there is life now. Not sure it is very much to write about, but it is what it is. I tend to spend a lot of time just wondering where this is all going to end. Hopefully I will just wake up dead some morning and my ride will be over. This is going to surprise a lot of my kids who are harboring the idea that I will live forever! And every morning that I open my eyes and look over at that clock that continues to mark the hours and minutes of my life, I am amazed. Mainly I am amazed that I have managed to spend this many hours, days and years on this little green and blue ball without sending it spiraling off course. But then I am not done yet, am I?
A friend sent me, completely out of the blue, a gift the other day. It came in the mail and when I opened it I was pleased to find a beautiful purple tee shirt. I love purple! And this was the perfect shade! I called him when I got it and before I opened it. I had a little trouble grasping what it said on the front in big white letters, but reflecting back, I realized that he had summed up my life with these words:
UNDERESTIMATE ME
That'll Be Fun
So, thanks, Ross Barnhart, for reminding me that there are still people out there who care and think about each other. I like to think that some day our lives will go back to normal and that we will be able to meet for lunch or pop in Starbucks for coffee. It is sad that this year had to happen, but maybe it will wake us all up. Maybe I will start calling people and checking on them.
Or not.
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