Day 128 – Grayson’s Journey

When I called Grayson this evening, he came to the phone with his usual, "Hey, Mom". After asking him several questions and getting "not much" as answers, I asked him if he'd eaten dinner. First he said, "Yes" and then quickly changed his answer to "No". Since it was already 7:00 and he usually eats earlier than that, I asked him again and he said, "No". I asked if he was hungry (even though we're not sure he can feel hunger) and he answered in the affirmative. So I encouraged him to ask his RA what he had for dinner. "Hey, what did I have for dinner?" he yelled across the room. "No one said anything" he reported back to me. I asked him to get up, walk over to an RA and ask again and then told him I would wait for him to come back and tell me the answer. I heard him speaking with someone in the background and he came back on the line and said, "Dinner's not ready yet".

I realized that I hadn't trusted that he remembered correctly. I assumed that he had already eaten and had forgotten (as nearly every day previously) not only what he ate but even that he had eaten. How delighted I am to be wrong. Three cheers for another memory "inch".

We exchanged other small talk about his day and I tried to have him recall some of the therapies he had at the clinic today. All he could remember was that he rode in the van, ate lunch, and sat and waited a lot. Memory is a funny thing. Sometimes you can reach right out and retrieve accurately. Other times, there is nothing there when you reach out. I can only imagine how frustrating that is when someone expects you to have an answer.

When we hung up, we shared our usual farewell exchange. "I love you". "I love you more". Sigh … the simplest joy, so often taken for granted.

Grace and peace,

Regina