Update on Dad 1-23-11

Hello Everyone,

This week's report comes from a conversation with my sister Christie who's been in Utah recently, and my conversation with Dad tonight. I also have a digital copy of Elouise Bell's favorite photo of Dad, and it made me think of a creative writing assignment I wrote when I was a freshman in Elouise's class!

Christie told me that she and Martha and Lucy visited a care facility in Spanish Fork that they liked and where they may move Dad, but the current facility has asked for time to fix the problems there. I think I've mentioned before that Dad's in a room with two other people, and the one person actually takes up about two-thirds of the room, and he watches TV incessantly. There isn't room to sit and visit with Dad, and there's been a concern that Dad isn't getting enough help with meals there. Apparently the current facility is going to move Dad into another room. (I should have thought to ask if they've already moved him when I called.) The new room will also have three people, but it should be quieter. I'm assuming there will be more room for people to visit with Dad, but I can't remember if Christie said anything about that or not. I'll keep you posted about where Dad is, but if you go to visit Dad and he's not in his usual room, ask where they've moved him.

I spoke to Dad tonight for a few minutes. I told him how cold it's been here and how many layers I'd put on yesterday before going outside--tights, long johns, jeans, two pair of wool socks, two shirts, and hoodie, a jacket with a hood and scarf, and heavy mittens. I didn't get much reaction to that--maybe an "Oh my."

I did get a chuckle from Dad when I told him about the new book I got Jeffrey. It's an ABC book, and some of the letters have a picture hidden behind a flap. Jeffrey immediately learned the names of all the animals under the flaps. For "I," it's iguana, which he pronounces "wee-guana." He'd open the flap, we'd talk about the picture, and then he'd close it and say, "Where's the wee-guana?" I'd say, "I don't know--where is the iguana?" Then Jeffrey would open the flap and say, "There's the wee-guana!" Then he'd close the flap and ask again--maybe ten times in a row--such a fun game!

Dad told me several times that my voice sounded good. When I told him that Christine, Michael, and Jeffrey sent their love, he said, "Oh, that's good." We sent each other our love and said goodbye.

Now for the picture of Dad. Elouise Bell, Dad's colleague in the English Department and dear friend, sent a copy of this picture to my brother Alan who digitized it and "cleaned it up." This is Elouise's favorite picture of Dad, and I can see why. Alan says, "Elouise said [the picture] was 50 years old, but based on Dad’s hairline and the amount of gray, I’d say that it isn’t that old.  More likely in the 25 to 30 range.  I have a picture of Dad from the airport when I left on my mission that’s not quite 44 years ago, and he is clearly younger."

This picture makes me think of how much Dad loved teaching and his colleagues in the English Department. It also reminds me of an assignment I wrote for Elouise's creative writing class: write a description of a place or a thing that reveals something about the owner.

I was typing up my assignment, and Dad walked by and looked over my shoulder. I said, "Don't look! Don't look!" and tried to hide what I'd written. A bit later he came back and said, "You're describing my desk, aren't you?" His desk looks amazingly clean in this photo; when he was department chair, it was much messier. I remember describing an old copy of a campus newspaper that was hanging off the desk, just the corner held down by the piles of papers on top of it. I told Christine about the assignment and said I wasn't sure that my description actually revealed anything about Dad, but it was fun to write, and Dad (in typical fashion) wasn't disturbed that I was writing about his messy desk.

Well, that's all for this entry. Thanks for reading, everyone, and thanks for letting me know you're reading.