She Knew the Time Was Now

The cell phone rang in its charger. Marilyn yawned and looked across the room at the electric clock.  Seven o’clock in the morning.  Wasn’t this Saturday?  Who calls at 7 on a Saturday.  She was tempted to just let the phone go to voice mail, but finally got up to look at the caller ID. Then she snatched up the phone and sleepily said,

“Daddy, what is it? It isn’t Sunday.  You always call on Sunday.”

“Well, honey, I thought you’d want to know.  Your Mama is in the hospital.” 

“Daddy! What’s wrong?  What happened to Mama?”

“She just got so she couldn’t even walk across the room.  Her breath just gave out. We finally went to Dr. Hayes and he put your Mama right in the hospital.  They’re doing tests, I guess.”

“How long has she been there?  When is she coming home?  What’s wrong with her?  Should I come home?”

“I don’t know, honey.  The doctor didn’t say.  Maybe you could come home and talk to him.  You know more about these medical things than I do.”

“I’ll leave right now, Daddy.  Don’t wait up for me, I still have a key to the house.”

“You be careful, sweetheart.  Don’t go speeding.  I’ll be listening for you. Bye, honey.”

“Bye, Daddy, I love you.”

Marilyn clicked off her cell phone and stared at the ceiling, not really seeing.  She tried to think in an orderly fashion, but her thoughts ran off in all directions.  Mama in the hospital.  Mama was never sick.  Both she and Daddy were like sturdy oaks, weathering whatever Mother Nature threw at them.  They were the healthiest two people she knew.  Or they had been.  Now Mama was in the hospital.  Having tests. Short of breath.  Oh, my God, there were so many things that could be from.  

Finally, she forced herself to sit down and think things through more clearly.  She knew the time was now that she’d have to switch from being the child who was looked after by her parents to the child who looked after her parents.  She had been vaguely aware that this moment might come.  She had seen a couple of her friends begin to help their parents make decisions, and in one case, actually become the caregiver for her mother.  But she hadn’t really considered that role for herself.  But here it was, staring her in the face.  Her Daddy and Mama needed her.  They deserved her help, hadn’t they helped her out a zillion times in the past?  So now, it was her time, her turn, her duty, her obligation, her privilege.