Why I Dropped Everything And Went Back To Atlanta

Atlanta was good to us. Our trip to and fro was easy breezy. Being back as a tourist / visitor made it even better. Everything looked and felt different. There was no need to rush, no major obligations to fill, no responsibilities of home life. It held all of the good stuff you get to experience while traveling away from home. Not to mention, D and I were flying solo, kid free.

To our pleasure within the few days and nights we were there we got to experience so much. And, accomplish the very thing we went back for - quality time with my Dad and Mom, but mostly, my Dad.

Just a little while ago he was diagnosed with Dementia, a type of Alzheimer. His memory lapses are accompanied by bouts of heightened frustration for him and Mom. When I would speak to him on the phone I could hear his cry for help when reaching for things he's trying to remember. It's not an easy thing to experience a once strong, confident, and brave man be overtaken by such a thing. The last time we spoke on the phone which was a couple of weeks before my trip, he didn't sound well at all. I knew that I had to go see him, now. If I could have it would have been that night. But two weeks later, I was there, in his presence, and that meant everything. 

We surprised him. On Saturday afternoon I walked into my brothers kitchen and stood in the doorway and just smiled until he realized I was actually standing there. Heartfelt moment, I tell ya. It was filled with emotions that ran through the both of us at once. It was just me and him in that moment, like many moments before that I remember from my childhood. We sat in silence just staring at each other. You would think I'd been gone for years. It's just been a few months, but I understand to him, it may seem like years.