Gardens at Jose Cuervo
We’ve had a couple of storms at night this week – even hail! There’s a hurricane out in the Pacific, so perhaps it’s related to that. Last night as we were watching a movie, the wind got so strong that we had to run outside and take down the hummingbird feeders. This morning it was nice and cool, and when John got up, he found the hummers eating at the feeders on the floor! There were about a dozen of them fighting over the two feeders – really incredible. While I was sitting on the balcony having my coffee and watching them, the pair of red-lored parakeets flew about 15 feet in front of me and sat in a nearby tree for a while. John said while he was in the gym this morning, he watched a beautiful vermilion flycatcher drink from the swimming pool – lots of bird activity already today!
Monday night we hosted book club at our house. I led the discussion of “The Brothers,” a fascinating book about John Foster Dulles and his brother Allen. John Foster was the Secretary of State for Eisenhower, and at the same time, Allen was the director of the CIA. It’s amazing how much power and influence they had, how little accountability, and how they shaped the foreign policy of the United States. They were instrumental in overthrowing foreign governments, and Allen was in charge during the Bay of Pigs. I’m usually not a big non-fiction reader, but this was really a great read.
I made a couple of trips to the hospital this week to see our friend Yazmin and take people to give blood. She’s still in intensive care, but her husband let John and I in to see her for a few minutes. She’s really been through the wringer the last few weeks.
Friday night, John got us hooked up with an English-speaking gaming group. There were eight of us, and we had a lot of fun. We played “Coup,” then split into two groups. John’s group played “Puerto Rico” and my group played “Lord of the Rings.” It was a total geekfest, but good clean fun. It was nice to meet some folks who aren’t related to the Consulate, too.
Yesterday John and I worked all day. He had people in working on the building and I just needed to get caught up. Afterward, we stopped by a fun taco stand and had beer and tacos. Later in the day I went to a jewelry party at Cindy’s apartment, then we watched a movie.
Mom seems to be holding her own right now. We’ve had more changes with caregivers – her primary caregiver had a family emergency a couple of weeks ago and is out, but the fill-ins seem to be doing well. She hasn’t been getting up in her wheelchair since she was so sick in late May, which worries me, but hopefully she will want to as she gets more comfortable with the caregivers.
Hospice called in the middle of the night on Monday to let me know Mom had passed away. I flew to Hot Springs immediately and John came the next day. We had a lovely visitation here at her house Friday night and a beautiful burial Saturday morning at Caldwell Cemetery, where her parents and grandparents are buried. It’s near where she was born and spent her childhood. I hadn’t been there in years, but it is very remote, serene, and beautiful.
