My work schedule has changed so I am frequently up by 4 am now and out the door by 5. It sounds horrendous but really isn't that bad once you get used to it. This also happens to coincide with my mom's schedule of using the restroom so as I am getting ready I will see a little old lady appear at the door.
It's the same everyday... "can I come in, I have to pee."
"Of course you can come in." My mom shuffles forward then stops and says "I need a hug." So we hug and she hangs on for dear life. "I don't think I can let go" she always says. "Well if you're going to pee you HAVE to let go eventually." " I know, but I don't want to." Fair enough.
She uses the restroom and washes her hands. She is very good about the handwashing because it is routine now, which took us several months of training to accomplish. At first her response was "Why, I never pee on my hands." " Wash them anyway, you get no hugs if you don't wash your hands." She considered it a fair trade.
On her way out she always stops and says "I need a hug." "You just had a hug." Sometimes I get impatient because I am trying to get ready for work and get out the door. But her blue eyes and outstretched arms settle the matter. Another hug, and I realize that these moments will go away someday. She will stop asking for hugs and I will be devastated then. I will mourn the loss of hugs and the loss of her connection to me. I don't know what that will look like, but I am pretty certain that I won't like it.
The truth is, I need a hug too. And I am going to take them as long as she will give them to me.
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