Family is the best medicine

Bob got a treat from his daughter Tina this last weekend. Rob and I wanted to attend the bluegrass festival in Fort Christmas. Bob does not like country music at all and would have had a horrible time. Rob called his sister and asked if she would visit for the day while we went to the festival. She was delighted to help.

I told Bob that Tina was coming to visit Saturday evening when he was going to bed. He was happy to hear the news. He sat on the edge of the bed and said, “Tina Marie”. I said, “Yep, that’s her name.” He nodded his head yes, that was indeed her name. And he crawled into bed.

Pat and Tina arrived early in the morning with donuts and coffee. What a great treat for Bob. He came out all dressed and ready for the day and had donuts waiting for him. He was happy already. I ran through the typical dos and don’ts with Tina and then Sarah, Rob, and me got in the car and left.

I must confess I was a little nervous. I felt like a mother leaving her child for the first time. It was a silly feeling, but it was still there. Rob joked with me in the car.

At the festival the phone rang and I grabbed it after two rings. Pat and Tina wanted to take Pop to lunch.

“Do you have a spare key to they house anywhere?” Tina asked.
Silence, and then I started laughing. Of course there wasn’t a spare key to they house. Why would we think of such a thing?
“Leave the back door unlocked,” I said. “You won’t be gone long and no one ever goes to that door.”

I made a mental note…make a spare key for Tina.

It was a great day at the bluegrass festival. We heard great music, saw some crafts, and ate some scrumptious BBQ.

When we got home around 4:30 we entered a house that was full of happy people. Pat and Tina both said they couldn’t believe how fast the day went.

“It seemed to just fly by,” they both said. “We sat and talked all morning long about old times. We talked about Smokey, the cat, Rob playing his guitar in his room with all of his friends. We kept saying, ‘get out of my room’ which was a popular phrase when the kids were young.”

Bob sat on the couch with Christina grinning from ear to ear. He had been out of his room all day. They had lunch at Fire House Subs where Christina works. He had a full, fun day with family. It was the best medicine for him.

The funniest story Pat and Tina shared about the day was when they took him to lunch. Every time he eats his nose runs. His sinuses open up and it is like turning on a faucet. Tina handed him a napkin and told him to wipe his nose. He did wipe his nose and then he took the napkin, looked at it, gestured to Tina to look, and said, “Would you look at that, it looks like a man riding a horse.”

Bob had a full day and was in bed snoring by 9:00. Bob was in a great mood for the whole next week. Family really is the best medicine.