It’s always good to be able to report the especially good days that Kate and I continue to have. That never means they don’t include sad, troublesome, or strange experiences mixed with all the good. The contrast between the good and not-so-good has never been more striking than the past two days.
I consider a day to be good when Kate seems especially happy all or most of the day. Friday, she began the day cheerfully and showed no obvious indication that she was disturbed over any confusion she may have had. She didn’t ask where she was or who I was. I didn’t go in to check on her until just before noon although the sitter was to arrive at 1:00. She was awake and got up easily. We were eating lunch when Mary arrived.
The transition from our being together and then handing her off to Mary has gotten smoother over time. It has been even better since we have been sheltering. I think that is a direct result of my not leaving immediately when she arrives and the fact that I am still around much of the time she is here.
About forty-five minutes before Mary was to leave, I overheard Kate get up from her rest and begin a conversation. Then I heard her ask about the bathroom. Because we still try to maintain physical distancing while the sitter is here, I walked into the room and asked if she wanted to go to the bathroom. Kate was pleased to see me. I feel sure she had forgotten I was still in the house.
When we walked back into the family room, Kate greeted Mary warmly and said, “Who are you?” I said, “This is your friend, Mary. She stays with you when I am not here.” I added that I still had a few things I wanted to take care of in the other room and left the two of them together. They engaged in an easy-going conversation.
I ended up letting Mary go about twenty minutes early. When I did, Kate thanked Mary for being here and went on to say a number of good things about her. After Mary was gone, Kate told me she really liked her.
The day had gone well, so I was surprised when we had a strange experience after she had gotten in bed. I had turned on some YouTube videos of Andrea Bocelli. She relaxed for a short time and then said she needed my help. I went to her bedside, and she showed me her hand and said, “See that?” I didn’t see anything but told her I did. She wanted me to pull back the covers and proceeded to take off her night gown. Then she gave me careful instructions about running my hands over her forehead, around her neck, over and under her arms and down to her feet. She was very serious about this as though something harmful was on her body. When I finished, she was fine.
It was almost two hours before I went to bed. She was still awake. I don’t know whether she waits for me to come to bed or she has rested so much during the day that she isn’t sleepy. I think it’s the latter, but she is always glad when I join her. It’s a good way to end the day and is typical even on days that haven’t gone as well as this one did.
