Ordinary

It's been a while since I put anything up here.  Not that I don't want to communicate but the things going on in my life have been so run-of-the-mill (nice phrase!) that I didn't think there was anything anyone would be interested in.  Normal stuff like working in the garden and cooking and little projects around the house don't seem worthy of comment-or are they?  These "little things" are what make up my life and if they are not important then what is?

This weekend (Memorial Day weekend) has been case study in the ordinary.

Saturday Lizzy and I drove down to the "Island" and began the weekend-long chore of looking after the Oma's.  Great Oma is now 104 years old and Mutti is a youngster of about 84 plus or minus.  Lizzy's sister and other caregivers are usually around to do the heavy lifting six days a week.  Lizzy drives the 100+ mile round trip every Saturday (after working a job all week) and bathes and cleans the "girls", the house and then does some shopping and coordinates the rest of the week with her sister.  The two of them are saints.  It has been said that the prime determinant of longevity and quality of life is whether or not you have a daughter.  These two hard working women are primo examples of this theory.  It is important to me to go with Liz when her sister is away.  It is not that I can be of any great help but I can be there.  Just be there.  But sometimes I can fix a window screen, or cook blueberry pancakes for their breakfast or weed the flower beds.  Not important, I know.  Ordinary. 

On Sunday we drove into the City and visited Jake and TT in their apartment in Brooklyn.  They are there for the summer, working internship jobs at law firms.  They will both graduate from law school next year.  We are so proud of them.  There is very little we, as parents, can do for them anymore.  They are mature and self reliant and about all we can share is a meal in a quiet bistro, a walk in their new neighborhood, a laugh or two.  Ordinary.

Benny is home taking care of the fort while Liz and I are away for the weekend.  He is my bulwark of innocence and strength.  He can be counted on to feed the cat on time, water the garden if need be, and do a modicum of cleaning around the homestead while we are with the old ladies.  He will not drink too much of my beer or call me needing bail from the Peekskill jail.  He will spend time with his friends or his lovely girlfriend and buzz me with a IM if he plans on going away...just so we can coordinate.  Ordinary.

Matt is far away right now.  Down South.  Living in his little cottage with B.L.  Working (?).  Growing his own garden and searching.  We are taking a sort of break in our communications right now.   Don't ask.  This is, I suppose, what fathers and sons do sometimes.  When they need time and space to be able to expand their chests and just breathe.  When they don't want to say the wrong thing at the wrong time, or have the right thing taken the wrong way.  I spend a lot of my time quietly contemplating this hiatus and hoping it will be over soon.  Life is too short to waste one moment of Ordinary.