For the first time in a few years, I spent a couple hours with Gram. She is in the hospital after a fall and I was the closest person available.
We did what we do. We talked about trips. Abby and I are just back from Florence, so Gram told me about her trip to Forence. As Gram remembers, she went in the 1930’s. “Before the war”, she notes. Abby and I just came back from a Florence where I called ahead for museum reservations and listened to Rick Steves podcast tours. I imagine Gram’s trip was a little more like a Bicycle Thieves Italy (black and white, dusty and full of smoke.)
Per usual we recapped some of our old trips. Summer trips to North Carolina and Tennessee. I spent hours eating salt water taffy and reading novels and Triptiks in the co-pilot seat.
We talked about how lucky we are now. The great grandchildren are beautiful and I’m lucky to have Abby. I am grateful we have Gram to share these times with.
Gram says JC reminds her of me as a boy. Sometimes she forgets that I am the man who was the boy. The boy in his towheaded squirminess re-animates the good times we had.