Let me explain...

When I posted yesterday I mentioned that the title of the blog– Let Me Get My Shoes – is a tribute to my Mom. Several folks reached out to me worried that something had happened to her! Oops. Please know that she is alive and kicking! I used the word tribute, because starting this blog, for me, is my way of saying (as she does) – Let me get my shoes. 

Let me explain.
My Mom is 88. Like anyone who has reached that ripe old age, she’s had some challenges – a pacemaker, knee replacements, hearing loss, and a minor stroke. But nothing really stops her.

She’s a Floridian through and through having moved to Tampa over thirty years ago. She roots for all the Tampa teams even going to ice hockey games with my brother who keeps an eye on her when she’s south. She has season Broadway series tickets at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center and attends by herself (“I’ve gotten to know the family seated next to me and they always help me get my headphones on so I can hear the show.”)

Let me explain.
Each summer she makes the trek north. And she’s just as active here. My sister will drag her to collie dog gatherings and out for sushi. I grab her to go to galleries and spend time with her great-grandchildren. She rides in the cart with my brother as he plays nine holes late in the afternoon. But we are only part of her social life.

Let me explain.
There’s the Red Hatters lunches. The condo association gatherings. And her favorite group, the MahJongg ladies. Now steps are hard for Mom, but she has her own purple-flowered fold-flat footstool (which she keeps in the bag of her red walker) that she whips out so that she can climb onto the bus when this group hits the road. She did a river boat cruise on the Hudson last fall – by herself. She’s planning on doing another one on the Mississippi in 2021 (my sister and I are angling for an invite.)

Let me explain.
This past week she had to have a small growth removed from her cheek. It was done in the doc’s office and at the end she had not very subtle stitches. “I’m ready for Halloween.” But did she want to go home to rest – nope. It was Tuesday – MahJongg day. So she asked my sister-in-law to take her to Carrabbas so she could catch up with the MahJongg ladies for dinner.

If she can be open to new experiences, ready to try almost anything – so can I. Like her, I want to be able to say – Hang on, let me get my shoes.