Posted by
AudiR10TDI on Thursday, September 13, 2007 7:12:05 AM
September 13, 2007 -- My sisters and I decided back some time ago that our parents should move from the very small town they live in down South, to a larger city up North among the family. Mama admitted that when Daddy retired and they moved south, she had anticipated developing the close relationship with her family that we had all enjoyed with Daddys family since we had lived up North. Unfortunately, the two families are as different as night and day, and as Mama and Daddy have aged, the differences have grown. So with Mama being the only ambulatory member of the family left, save for a passel of self-centred cousins who live nearby but will not lift a stick to hit a lick at a snake even for their own mother, we told the folks it was time to move away from there and come home.
Yesterday the final piece of the puzzle finally was hammered into place, and the move will take place as scheduled October 13th.
Mama has a younger sister who lives in just across the lawn, whose four children (the aforementioned cousins) do little or nothing for her. She has stood amazed as the five of us, having met in conclave and determined what needed to be done, swung into action. Assignments were made and promptly carried out. The rule was made early on that there would be absolutely no discussion of *You put in less than me* or *Look what I did!* Sweat equity was counted right along side financial contributions and nobody was keeping track for the purposes of bludgeoning anyone else. One sister was in charge of helping Mama pack and sort household goods; one brought her fiance and packed 62 boxes of books to be transported, donated or stored (and also arranged for the truck, including offering to drive it); one sister paid for the truck -- an experience that required a four hour bus trip to another country for fifteen minute transaction, then four hours home) and looked up apartments on the Internet to send local sisters off to inspect -- and kept them honest about what exactly we were looking for and why a 444 square foot match box in a high rise was NOT on the agenda, got the plane tickets and found out about the special needs process, and handled logistics to be sure everyone kept on time and on target (that would be me) -- one sister took on the medical side of the transfer, which was a large one, finding new doctors and opthalmologists and chiropractors and explaining how to transfer their records; a brother in law took care of insurance transfers and promised to handle banking, car tag and driving license transfer once they get moved; loading and unloading crews were found, hotels were arranged, and two sisters undertook the finding of the apartment. One of these sisters went well above and beyond the call of duty in this regard. When the perfect apartment was found, and turned us down, she did not take No for an answer but waded right in and discovered what the problem was, and made phone calls and visits and continued to keep the pressure on until every one of the questions was answered and the required approval was found. This, she said with satisfaction, required every Jewish skill in her arsenal and the famous *Fiercely Eyes* of the old Eloise stories -- and, she joked, the impression that either they would give us the apartment or they would be haunted by Harpies for the rest of their natural lives. We four supported her with liberal doses of prayer, and we prevailed. They blinked. We got the perfect apartment.
So now the hard part is done. We have the apartment, the truck, the work crews both South and North, the hotels booked, the car rented, the plane tickets bought, the arrangements made for pickup at the airport and arrangements for what will happen every minute until they are settled into their new home.
And what surprises me the most is how astonished people are that it took us two and a half months from the time we decided what to do, until the day we did it. We are more efficient than Pattons 8th Army; although we are rauccous and argumentative and many of us disapprove of the lifestyles of each other, when the time comes for something to be done, we close ranks and get it done.
And do not believe that once Mama and Daddy are settled in their new home, they will be abandoned to their own devices. The new place is nearby grandchildren and great-grandchildren, five minutes from the hospital where many of their new doctors practice, and within call of the kind of large extended family that we had when we grew up. Life will be good again and stress will decrease. With the help of God and all the saints, and the good training we received as kids, we will have won the war.
Now if only we can get them to believe that we have it all covered and all they have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride!