Travel and things

Freshly back from a work trip to London, I hopped on another plane less that 24-hours later and headed to Minnesota.  That’s where I am now–in some motel room off of 494, in between the airport and West St. Paul.

My grandma is ill. Or shall I say, more ill.  She’s been battling multiple myeloma for some years now, but it’s taken a turn for the worse as of late.  We had been afraid (from afar) that she was leaning towards some early stages of dementia. Seeing her now, in person, it’s obvious that she is just as quick-witted as ever but the overwhelming pain and the ensuing meds to battle it are what’s stopping her thought processes short and making her come across as confused. It’s a bittersweet revelation–good to know that she is lucid, sad to know that there is that much pain that shuts her down like that. She’s my last living grandparent.  She’s talking about her last days, trying to give things away so the “right” people get them, yet holding out hope to finally see a great grandbaby out of this side of the family.

Now that we know how’s she’s doing, that she is still “with it”, I think we will spend the next couple of days trying to spoil her a bit…bringing her favorite treats (bismarcks), stocking up on silly decor for her hospice room and visiting as much as we can between the naps and the pain.