I packed a lot into my Thursday and all in all, it was such a good day.

Mama Kay breezed through her foot surgery. We were at Sycamore Hospital for less than three hours. Before taking her home we ran thru the KFC drive-thru so she would have some food. I checked on her last night and a short while ago and she was doing fine and managing the discomfort with just Ibuprofen.

Last night was a Mary Lincoln Coterie meeting and chat session and it felt so good to immerse myself in the conversation of friends and colleagues. We accomplished a good deal of planning and creative discussion. However, within a few minutes, those of us gathered online were searching websites for information. We go down a multitude of rabbit holes each time and I love nothing more than to explore history.

Earlier this week, I learned my grandmother’s first cousin, Judy Jones Sanders, had passed away several years ago. I had reached out to her daughter in 2017 and at the time, Judy had stopped using her computer. I wish I had known of Judy’s passing but during Covid’s quarantine, life was a bit whacky. Judy and my great-aunt, Joyce Clary Riser, were the last surviving grandchildren of Joel Monroe Jones and Anna Greenlee Jones. Judy was the daughter of my great-grandmother’s (Mary Belle Jones Clary) youngest brother, Harry H. Jones and Vivian L. Silvey Jones.

This past year, I have noted a number of Facebook memories where I discussed various health items that I now recognize as different signs of my MS. For many years, things would pop up and they were deemed to be other things. On this date in 2017, I wrote:

“I am moving toward being 52.5 years old this March 25. The past month, I’ve noticed walking through the house, I proceed a little slower. Sometimes, going up and down the steps is not as quick as it once was. Eating takes a little longer and sometimes I have difficulty with liquids flopping up into the nasal cavities.  Tying my shoes requires extra effort. Loading or unloading the dishwasher isn’t as quick as it once was. Some routine tasks now mean I’ve got to spend additional time on them. I don’t feel older (well, some days I do).”

I find all this to be fascinating because I just believed it was part of the aging process. However, there have been many signs since my mid-twenties that we now know were specific signs of multiple sclerosis. My sister’s MS is different from mine in many ways, but we also have several similarities. Again, it is fascinating.

I need to return to my writing for the next 90 minutes before it is time to get ready for a show tonight. Tomorrow, I will see a matinee of a student in RADIUM GIRLS at Centerville High School.

Sunday, the new weeks will commence with three days of teaching, taking Mama Kay to her check-up appointment, and then the two days of back-to-back anniversaries remembering the passing of Don Parker, Thursday, and my younger brother, Destin Haas, on Friday. However, Friday afternoon, there will be an update to The Haasienda. Stay tuned.

Make it a great day!

PHOTOS: Erma & Bailey, 2019