Catsup, or Catsoup?

I find myself playing a game of catch-up in the story that is my life.  This would be a mundane task for a Saturday night, had my life not advanced several years in the past week!

The family:  The much-needed trip was made to see Grandma Libby, perhaps for the final time.  I kept wishing I’d had my computer, as I yearned to record every tiny moment, every fleeting emotion…and at the same time, I knew that words on the page would have escaped me, or made as much sense as the flighty half-sentences springing from my lifelong heroine’s lips.  It was comforting to be with my mother and her sisters (and most especially my favorite aunt Ju) but painful to watch the understanding cross their faces as Grandma’s body and spirit failed her more with each passing minute.  Tonight I wait again for word that the end is near.  My heart would break, if death would not be a gift to her and end her soul’s struggling.

The job:  A few days away put me more than a week behind.  It is difficult to find my motivation, though I can afford no setbacks now.  My favorite holiday approaches–Inventory–and perfection must be sought.  It is who I am. 

Shelly's April Fools Sparkler

The friends:  I absolutely missed the opportunity to dedicate an entire blog post to my most trusted and loyal GF, Shelly Belly, on her birthday this past week.  We have yet to celebrate together, but I’m certain that chimichangas will be enjoyed.  Perhaps more important than the birthday itself was the final gift of her evening:  a sparkling mega-token of commitment and love from her longtime partner.  Now begins the perpetual engagement, and two years worth of style-on-a-budget wedding planning.  I can hardly wait!!

The Romance:  My own new-ish relationship advances at warp speed (as viewed from the outside) as my Forever Mac’s tractor beam continues to pull me in.  I wonder what I was so scared of until now, avoiding my beautiful friend and a relationship with him, when I absolutely knew that he would love me for the rest of my life with loyalty and with passion.  It seems silly.  Why would I have feared loving the man I always knew I was meant to find?  The only sticking point is a question which may or may not be resolved tonight:  will his (inherited) cat friend tolerate the Queen Bitch, and will the Queen Bitch attempt to eat him?  Can he successfully be blended into my crazy catsoup?

These stories will wait for another day.  I have life to live tonight, far, far from Lonesuckiness, somewhere in the center of  Happytown.  Though I am sad to lose the woman I love most in the world, I know I can best honor her by loving a partner the way she loved my Granddaddy, and being the mother and grandmother she taught me to be.  It’s a hard act to follow.  But I intend to try my damnedest.