It's Father's Day.
My parents live about a minute and a half from my house.
And I haven't even gone over to wish my Dad Happy Father's Day... sigh
I really, really, REALLY, don't want to go over there and have to see the mess.
It's one thing to hear about it (which I have from other family members), it's another thing entirely to have to hang out in it! I know exactly what will happen if we show up on the doorstep...
First Mom will make a whole bunch of excuses as to "why" the house looks the way it does (as if it doesn't ALWAYS look that way). Mostly things like, "Your Father needs to take care of his stuff" (five of the five hundred things in the front room belong to my Dad), or maybe "I haven't been feeling all that well" (which seems to occur every time she even thinks about cleaning), or a favorite of mine, "I've just been so busy cleaning the [fill in the blank] that I haven't had time to clean up in here". Keep in mind that "cleaning" means moving things from one room to another, thus giving one room the appearance of being clean while simultaneously piling things to the ceiling in another. I really hate it when she makes it excuses. I think she really believes what she is saying, and that makes me sad... and mad.
Sometimes, I find myself making excuses. It's ingrained in me. I usually force myself to stop (before I start to sound crazy, I hope). But I digress...
As she is rattling off excuses she will start shuffling things about in a mad rush, moving papers from one surface to another, clearing a couple of spots to sit down. I will hold the baby on my lap because it is too unsafe to let her toddle about in the crap and all the other kids will head outside (thank heavens) to play... wait a minute!
HOLD EVERYTHING!
I haven't been over to Mom's since the seasons changed! It turns out we can go over to see my parents today. You see, when the weather is decent we all sit and visit out in the shade of the tree out front. In the summer and early fall, people visiting my parents don't actually have to be subjected to the mess, the excuse making, the overall craziness! It's peaceful and relaxed, almost normal!
Well, I had better go get the kids ready!
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1 comment:
It's almost a relief to hear that my Mom isn't the only one who gives excuses everytime I go to her house. My mom's excuse is always "I've been so busy that I haven't had time to clean!" It makes me angry, sad, and just plain annoyed that she's lying to me. I want to say back..."Wow Mom, you must be really busy!" Does she not realize she gives this excuse EVERY SINGLE TIME? Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you for your post. It's nice knowing I'm not alone.
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