Getting Through the Holidays

I love the holidays.  I love the spirit of the holidays.  I love the food.  I love being around the people I love the most.  In many ways, we did everything we could to keep this particular Thanksgiving normal.  My mom cooked enough food for a small army.  We played our usual board games and watched Christmas movies.  We all drank a little bit more.  If I'm being incredibly honest, I think I probably cornered the market on drinking this weekend.

Behind the very happy go lucky exterior, there were hushed conversations of what happens next.  I believe I talked to no less than four scheduling people as I waited in lines on Black Friday.  My brother called two doctors before the men in my family headed to a Pitt game that didn't end cheerfully whatsoever.  I really tested the limits of how much my dad could eat without getting sick.  I want as much weight on him before he enters into the next stage of this process.  Even today, before meeting for lunch, my brother headed out with my dad to the tests I scheduled.  Things may look normal, but we all know looks can be deceiving.

I have two nephews who are 6 and 8 years old.  For the moment, we are keeping them in the dark until we have all of the information.  Mainly, I think we all want to protect their memories and their holidays as much as possible.  In that realm, we succeeded.  I am hoping my nephews will remember playing football in the backyard with my husband and their dad, my brother.  I hope they will remember sneaking downstairs to hang out with my father and the family dog.  I hope they will remember singing happy birthday to my mom and all of the icing smeared over their faces.  I hope they will remember my puppy believing that he was invited to play tackle football in the backyard as he chased after them.  I hope they will remember that we are and always will be a family that loves them more than anything.

At the end of the weekend, we will all head back to our respective cities.  I will start a new job next week.  My brother, sister-in-law, and husband will return to work.  And those moments will be impossibly difficult.

I started a MedGift page for my father, https://www.medgift.com/EvenSupermanNeedsaHand, because right now, it's the only way I know of to help.