Becoming Shady Pines

I know that many of you have heard me refer to my house as Shady Pines. It is a term I use often. In fact, I have even referred to myself as the director of Shady Pines. If you think you have heard that before it is because you most likely have. The retirement home that Dorthy put Sophia in on the Golden Girls tv show was called Shady Pines. It was something that I always found funny and when our home became more and more like a retirement home, well the name stuck. It has become something of a joke in my family and we make fun of ourselves her e a lot.

Not in the bad sort of way either. One question that I am asked most often is how my home became Shady Pines. After all I have siblings so how did I get the one elected to take on our mother as well as our uncle. It really ins’t that much of a story. It’s more of a one thing led to another.

Eighteen years ago (I can’t believe it’s been that long) my father passed away. Prior to his death he and I talked a lot about all of the things that would happen once he did die. He was worried about my mother and how she would cope. He had me promise him that no matter what I would always take care of her. It didn’t where I went in the world or whom I married, if she needed me I promised to be there.

It wasn’t a difficult promise and in truth, he was right to extract it form me. My mother didn’t handle his death well and every year for the first few she seemed to sink deeper and deeper into herself. Then we had her move in with us. I was with my ex at the time and moving her in here seemed like the thing to do.

It was! She began to thrive, although she still has some days that are tough for her. It would be years later that her younger brother came to live with us. He had already had several heart-attacks by then and had just been disabled. He couldn’t care for himself and had no one else other than my mother. So it made sense that he moved in with us.

Getting everyone moved in was not easy. It was not like there was a button that said click here and everything got moved plus every one lived happily ever after. There are a ton of growing pains. There still are. There are times when we all drive each other crazy. I never knew my mother to argue so much as she does with my uncle. Of course, growing up I didn’t see this particular uncle much as we moved away.

Add in the fact that I can’t get them to eat vegetables. I mean ketchup is not a vegetable I don’t care how many times my uncle says it. My mother will each broccoli but then she will also get cheesy broccoli pasts for days on eat. Then they both will complain about the fact they can’t seem to go to the bathroom. I mean they literally just ate a ton of cheese. It is worse than having kids sometimes. Other times I just want to yell out “Shady Pines, Ma! Shady Pines!”