mom in the dirt
this past weekend i decided to take a quick jaunt home to visit the family with hopes of curing a slight stir craziness. the last trip to southern illinois was made under more somber terms when my grandfather passed back in february. and with that lingering chill in the air in chicago, a nice car ride to a more mild climate seemed in order.
the drive was uneventful, which is welcome, considering back in november a 5-hour drive turned to 11 hours thanks to ice prior to the thanksgiving holiday. shaun the dog™ slept most of the way as i cruised along at an average 77mph, down 10mph from my days of owning a mitsubishi eclipse. perhaps i’m becoming more sensible. or just getting old.
the 24-hour trip was rife with sisterly antics, as my parents stood by, shaking their heads at our emerging similarities. my sister is 12 years my junior, and we’ve technically only resided under the same roof for about 6 years. regardless, the likeness in our mannerisms is uncanny, only reinforced by our appearances, minus the hair color.
though my sister and i shared many laughs, most of it was at the expense of my mother. and i mean no disrespect as at random times she even found herself bursting into fits of laughter at her own mishaps. one such time being an incident with the dog.
i had just gotten home and instead of pottying after the long car ride, shaun insisted on running up the back porch to greet my family. after his obligatory slobbery kisses to everyone’s faces, he then realized he needed to go. my mother was going out anyway to take out the trash, so she leashed shaun and made her way outside. i walked outside too just to enjoy the warm sun on my skin.
mom deposited the trash, shaun peed and then she tried to participate in puppy antics. she started a slight jog in the backyard (mom, love her to pieces, is not at all athletic) when shaun took her lead but darted off into another direction. unlike in skiing when you let go of the rope in times of unsteadiness, mom held tight to his leash.
until she landed in the dirt. face down. i likened her spectacle to a baseball player sliding into home.
and while she lay there, my little precious pup ran circles around her. literally. almost in a flaunting manner.
after i flew into laughter and grabbed shaun’s leash during his last lap, i did remember to ask my mom if she was ok. she pulled herself up from the ground, dusted off the dirt from her chest and legs, and i kid you not, there were skid marks left in the grass.