My Aunt Maude

If you've read my blog on a fairly regular basis, you've probably heard me talk about my Nana and my Aunt Maude (they're sisters). My Aunt Maude is my birthday buddy and probably the most hard headed person I've ever met. Seriously...just ask anybody in my family. She also happens to be 90 years old, sharp as a tack, and crazy active.

Today she had a fall. She thinks she blacked out for a minute, but came to immediately after hitting the ground. A few hours later my family took her to the hospital in town. Apparently she had a light heart attack sometime in the last few days, she has shingles across her face (which she suffered with for almost a week before she let anyone take her to the doctor last Monday), horrible bruising where she hit her face on the ground, a probable tibial plateau fracture (that's her knee, fyi), and kidney function at 20%. Sounds bad, right? Well, it probably is, but you wouldn't know it if you were in the room with her!

Apparently when the ER doc came in to tell her all this, she said (declared emphatically would probably be a more appropriate description), "You have all my papers! I don't want any tubes or shocks or anything crazy like that. I'm ready to go, and I know where I’m going, so if it's my time, you better just let me go! You have my papers!"

It made me laugh when my dad told me all this, because it’s just SO HER! But it also made me stop and think. How would I react if someone told me my death was imminent? Would I be able to declare that I’m ready to go when it’s my time? I hope I live my life so that I will be.

I’ll end with another funny story from the hospital today…

Apparently a transporter (young guy in his mid-20s) took my Aunt Maude for x-rays of her knee. She came back saying “This boy is single, and we need to find him a girlfriend!” My Aunt Kay (my dad’s sister) replied, “Well, Aunt Maude, you’re single too!” The rest of the exchange went a little something like this...

Transporter: I told her that, and she said she’s too broke down for me. I tried to tell her that I’m broke down too…I have a bum knee and a bum shoulder.
Aunt Maude: For the last time, I told you I’m not interested!
Transporter: Well, that’s probably the most direct turn down I’ve ever gotten.

Haha! I guess you have to know her to get it, but it’s just SO HER! I totally love it. And I love her. Whenever her time comes, I know she’ll be in a better place, and I blog because I want to remember her stories. I want to remember everything about her…until my time comes to see her again.