We had my parents over for dinner this evening, inside and without masks for the first time since all of this began. They received their second shot a week and a half ago, so we figured it’s pretty safe by now.
When I saw them pull up in their shiny blue VW Beetle, Mom at the wheel these days, I rushed out to help my dad. 2020 was a rough year for him; about a month before COVID hit, he suffered a stroke that left him struggling to recall words and often challenged to follow the conversation flowing around him. He is still himself and has his sense of humor, thankfully, but he has aged rapidly over the past year. He has grown a beard for the first time in his life, and he looks pretty cool. Every time I tell him this, he replies, “Honestly? Do you really think so?”
I relished giving them both long hugs, and as I embraced my mom, I almost lost it, but pulled myself back from the edge. I guess I figured if I started crying, there would be no telling when I would stop.
Right away, Edwin swooped in on his Nana and caught her up with everything he’s been up to lately, like the spaceships he’s crafted online and having 3-D printed and the Marvel movies he’s been plowing through. After Maxine changed clothes about three times before being satisfied with her look, she breezed into the kitchen and spread all of her rings out for Nana to see. Edwin, slightly miffed, but acknowledging it was her turn for Nana’s attention, relinquished the floor.
I had prepared a spring dinner in celebration of the reunion: roasted beet, goat cheese, orange, and arugula salad; fresh tagliatelle in a cashew cream sauce with asparagus, peas, walnuts, fresh herbs, and lemon zest; and a lemon meringue pie. Conversation flowed every which way around the table, and I often paused to catch my dad up when a confused look passed over his face. Every now and then, he’d slip in a wise crack.
As 8:00 approached, my parents prepared to say goodbye. Edwin quickly pulled up clips of Marvel movies to show Nana, and Maxine played Pop a few piano pieces. When they finally were able to extract themselves, I carefully walked my dad to the car, hugged them both goodbye, and made plans to see them again soon, without masks and definitely with more hugs.
My Corner of the Village 