Yesterday on the phone she was saying how good she felt now that she was exercising, but went on to talk about outreach to her numerous stepchildren, who live as far away as Amarillo, a thousand miles.
She said "I hope (Diane, etc.) they come up each year to see me. I really want to know what is happening to them."
I think that makes her special. I remember both parents encouraging me to do whatever I wanted - but I had to earn it. It was a tremendous lesson in independence and the critical thinking needed to figure out exactly how I was going to pay for those flying lessons I wanted!
But it worked. I screwed up the courage to go out to the little airport in Plainview where we lived and ask for a job in exchange for flying time. To my amazement they gave me the job! What a confidence builder that was. As a result I got my private and then commercial pilot's license - while my siblings whose flying lessons were paid for by my parents (dad as doing really well at sales at the time) did NOT finish getting their license.
Dad died on Earth Day 1971 in a car wreck. So mom has been both parents since then.
When she remarried after dad's death she inherited four stepkids to go with her four who were still home (I was gone by then). She remains a great example of what a parent in a blended family should be. She is also a great example of a positive attitude, even when her eyes no longer let her see due to macular degeneration.
Happy Throwback Thursday.
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