Friday, December 12, 2008

Holiday Horror

Furry Husband brought the mail in last night. We are starting to get Christmas cards. There was a card from Tom and Laurie that was really pretty - snowflakes and horses - our kinda card.
And a card from Chimney Rock Villa.


Chimney Rock is the nursing home my Pa is in. I prefer Chimney Rock winery. I eyed it suspiciously.


I told Furry Husband to shred the nursing home card.
It stayed on the kitchen table... and I opened it. Mistake #1


It was a normal computer generated card - "Merry Christmas" and then you opened the card. Mistake #2


Jay-zooo


Picture my reaction - like a 1950's horror movie with the close up of the woman about to be carted off by the giant ant... hand flies to mouth right before the blood curdling scream.


There, larger than life, is a close up photograph of my dad in a Santa hat.


Disturbing on SO many levels.


1. He is in a nursing home

2. He is not some fricking dog or baby that you dress up and take cutsie pictures of

4. He is in a nursing home

5. Holidays are difficult enough

6. Uh hello? I was raised Catholic. Let's just heap that much more guilt on my shoulders. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea culpa.

7. Let me say again - he is in a nursing home. Which means every thing this man had has been stripped away. His house, his belongings, his mind, his money and now he lives in a small tiled room in a building full of strangers. He has a bracelet super-glued around his wrist called a "wander-guard" so he can't escape.

8. #7 is because of me.

9. What is so happy and merry about any of that??


Merry Christmas! Ho ho nursing ho-me!

Now where IS that bottle of Chimney Rock wine when you really need it?!

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