Wheels and Repetitions

"Hi Pop. You want to go with me for a bit," I ask?
Sitting at the round dining table along with three other residents, pop sits with his head in his hands. I smile at the group coordinator and indicate that I'll be taking him home for a visit and have him back at Arveda by dinner time.
"No," Pop says."I'm kind of sleepy. I think I'll just stay here."
Feeling guilty because my visit with him is long overdue and knowing the drive and time with his family will be more beneficial then a nap, I persist.
"It is a beautiful day outside and I've got some errands to run. Thought you'd like to take a drive with me." His expression reveals his exasperation with my insistence but he gets up and follows me to the door anyway.

Moving out onto the high way I hear the same line that I always do when I pick him up for our visits, "Man those cars are moving fast."
Continuing down the road I hear the second repetition, "Boy this little car rides nice."
I respond as if I've never heard either of these remarks before.
Again, "Man those cars are moving fast!"

Third repetition,"How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine. How are you feeling?"
"Good," comes the response.
"You healthy? Wink is healthy?"
"Yes, we're all healthy."

"Man this little car rides nice."
"Yes, Beamers are nice cars."

"How's Deb?"
"She's good. She and Dick will be here next week."
"OOOOOOOh! How long will they be here for?"
"About a week."
"OOOOOOOOh!"

"Man this little car rides nice. These Hondas are great cars."
I don't correct him on the make of the car.

Fourth repetition comes ... "So how do you like living in Texas?"
"I like it."
"How do YOU like living in Texas, Pop?"
"It's different."
"Do you miss California?"
"Sometimes."

"Man this little car rides nice."
I try to change the subject with my previous comment. "Deb and Dick are coming next week." It is new news to him.
"Ooooooooh! Really? How long they going to be here?"
"A week."
"How are they doing? Everyone healthy?"

"So how do you like living in Texas?"
"Well, we've been here for nearly 11 years now so it feels pretty much like home."
"Oh, man. Has it been that long? Do you think you are going to stay?"
"Well, Wink has his business here. I think we'll be here until something changes."

Entering the bank parking lot, pop says to me, "You sure know your way around here."
"Yes, I've been living here for nearly 11 years, I repeat, so it is pretty clear to me now."
"Ooooooh. That long? How do you like living in Texas?"
Pop has obviously gotten onto a wheel, and our living in Texas has become the theme for today.
"How do YOU like living in Texas, Pop," I respond back?
"Oh, it's OK. Different."
"Are you homesick for California," I ask again?
"No, not really."
I ignore the discrepancy in his answer from his previous comment and continue to the ATM and then on to our next destination.

Moving at a snails pace we navigate Costco. Pop pushes the cart as it kills two birds with one stone. Pushing gives him some responsibility so he feels helpful and at the same time provides the necessary grip for his balance. I decide that shopping at pop's pace is too time consuming and it will involve too much effort for him to make my last stop at the lens counter. I pass on that for another visit and we make our way through the check-out and exit the store.

Hoping, again that the diversion at Costco would break into other avenues of discussion we head home. Soon I hear, "Well, I've gotten to see a little more of Texas today," sounding more like a visitor then a resident.

Finally arriving at our house I help him out of the car, up the short set of steps to our front deck and through the door. I note that he seems weaker and less steady on his feet then when he lived with us just 6 months ago. My husband greets him and ushers him to one of his favorite, comfy chairs.

"So how do you like Texas, Wink," says my dad?
"Oh, we like it, Don," comes the polite response.
"Do you think you'll stay here?"
"I think so."

Fortunately for my husband he has work to do in his office and gets up leaving me to field the litany of questions about Texas. Weary of the past 2 hours of repetition and feeling a bit trapped I excuse myself and go into the kitchen to prepare pop a second cup of tea. Texting my sister I give her a blow by blow account of my afternoon with our dad. We both text, LOL.

Hanging up my phone I realize that I have run out of reasons for hiding and I return to the living room with the cup of tea. Pop says, "Thank you and then ... So how long do you think you will live in Texas?" I look at my watch and decide that 2 and 1/2 hours of visiting is plenty. Besides it is nearly within an hour of dinner time at his residence and this is excuse enough for me to pack up and return him to his "home." I invite him to go for a drive. He responds in upbeat fashion and out the door we shuffle. Strapped in our seats, with 4.5 miles of listening time, I smile to myself as I hear him say one last time, "So how do you like living in Texas?"