Remembering October 5, 2024: Her first birthday in her new home
“Hey, Miss Evelyn is having a birthday,” the nurse said as he came with her medicine Saturday and saw the balloon tied to her wheelchair. “How old is Evelyn today?”
“You’ll be surprised when I tell you,” I replied, and he looked at me with a smile that said, “OK, I won’t guess.”
“Evelyn is 79 today.”
He took a step backwards and shook his head. “No, I never would have guessed THAT!”
In spite of her decline, Evelyn continues to look younger than her years. I’ve always been proud of how pretty she is, and, given the number of admirers she had when she was dating, I’ve always been surprised she chose me.
My conversation with the nurse brought one of several smiles that day. When I arrived with “Happy Birthday” necklaces from Dollar General and that helium balloon, Jan (who’s been her friend longer than I’ve known either of them) was there for a visit. Later Paul and Sev brought a pretty autumn T-shirt for later and a yard-long, fold-out card that played “Happy Birthday” with cheers and applause when you pressed a button.
I baked cupcakes for all the residents and helpers in her wing. (They were good, but cupcakes was a bad idea. At least half of the residents couldn’t unwrap them themselves, and at least two tried eating them without unwrapping them at all. Next time I’ll bring a cake.)
Tori, one of our caregiver friends who helps Evelyn afternoons and evenings, came later to take Evelyn on an outing: a middle school football game, Skyline chili, and ice cream. When she got back to Artis, both the front desk receptionist and the aide in her hall asked her if she had a nice time. “Oh, yes!” she said to each of them..
All week, Facebook had been showing me pictures from birthday celebrations in past Octobers. This one, for example, was snapped at Evelyn’s 70th birthday party, a surprise with our family in the Finger Lakes region of New York state.
If one picture is worth a thousand words, maybe a gallery of these pictures can give a hint of the onslaught of memories and emotions I felt as we celebrated Evelyn again this year.
Below: At a restaurant in 2016, at home in 2017, with friends (and a pumpkin pie!) in 2020.
Below: Two pies and a cake, 2021, 2022, 2023.
Finally, one of my favorites. I don’t know the date for sure; my photo archive says it’s 2021 but I’m guessing it’s earlier than that, 2018 or 2019. Tori snapped the picture at the right Saturday after they were back and Evelyn was ready for bed at the end of a busy, happy birthday.
