My grandmother passed in August and my aunt and father decided to have the funeral in early November. My grandmother had decided to be cremated, so there wasn't any concern over storing a body, so we had the luxury of time. Since I had a lengthy stop over in Seattle, we decided to make it a family trip and Arthur and Robinson joined me in Seattle to visit Arthur's Oldma and Oldpa, Great-Grandma Trask and Great-Aunt Kathleen, as well as my Aunt Gloria.
There are days when I really miss being in the Lower 48, especially Washington. I love the trees and the availability of certain foods and stores. Of course, there are things I don't enjoy as much such as the traffic or city driving (even in Anchorage, Alaska has no real "city driving" to speak of). Still, every time I go, I experience a mixture of nostalgia and homesickness. It's nice to be there, but it's also nice to be home.The Washington family did their jobs well: Arthur was completely spoiled by them. Great-Grandma Trask and Great-Aunt Kathleen gave him some Matchbox cars and monster trucks. Aunt Gloria gave him some blocks. Oldma and Oldpa gave him a big blue remote controlled train and lots of books. Most importantly, everyone gave him lots of attention. Especially Oldma.
Oldma, despite her condition, accompanied us on almost all of our outings. We were a little afraid of tiring her out (and some nights she looked completely exhausted), but she was pretty firm. Every morning she would ask us, "What are we doing today?" She came to The Bouncy Place, the Children's Museum of Tacoma, the pumpkin patch, and to the park. She read books and watched movies with Arthur. She talked to him and watched him play. I'm sure it was difficult for her not to be able to get down on the floor and drive cars around with him, but I think she was pretty grateful that he was able to come and visit.Blessed be.
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