November 2000

Mom. Starts sad. Ends happy.

So I hung up the phone and drove two hours to Mom's house and turned my key in the lock. The deadbolt didn't budge. I knocked. I banged the door knocker. I pounded. I rapped the front window. I cried. "Mom?!"

And ran around to the backyard to knock on her window.
And she woke up and let me in. Me in tears.

It's scary when your mom gets sick. Medicine for one end and the other. Two trips to the hospital for fluids. Gibbering. Sobering. <Another scary hospital trip>

But this is even scarier in a more fun way  <-:

Last night we were sitting in the living room, Mom sipping medical Gatorade in the recliner, me toying with my yummy green soybeans, when we heard a light rapping on the door. Like a visitor was hesitating to open the screen. "What's that?" "Maybe it's somebody slipping a flyer under the screen." "Shhh!" We never have visitors at night here.

The tapping came again. Random. Rat-a-tat-tat. "Is it the wind?" "I don't hear any wind." Our hearts were pounding. Who's on the porch? Mom turned out the bedroom light, crept in and peeked through the window shade. "I can't see any cars parked out there Wendy."

We chattered nervously in the hallway. The tap tap tap came again. "Must be the wind."

We turned off the living room light so nobody could see us. Mom crept to the window with a flashlight shining dim through her fingers. Just enough to see the carpet. "Nobody's on this half of the porch... Same from the side window."

"I should just shut the screen door," she said, but neither of us wanted to risk it. We turned on the lights and started talking. The rapping came again. Mom walked boldly to the door. I braced myself. She opened it and... latched the door. Then looked down and screamed, "A kitty! Shoo kitty. You don't live here." Mom hates cats.

Fleas and hair and licking their tails. Mom turned to me horrified. She pointed to the black cat preening his fur on the door. "Aieeee!  They're following you, Wendy! Eeee!" Next, we joked, it will be like Hitchcock's The Birds, cats will be surrounding the house with claws scratching on glass and furry bodies coming down the chimney. Eek!

I do love my cats.

<A Dove & Cat Story>   <Another Scary Story>