Things Happen....

Boy, seems like this week is one filled with not such good news around this area.

We (Mandy, the kids and I) went tonight to a viewing for a lady who was a good friend to me and also, to my kids -especially to my son. She had two boys -one about the same age as my son and the other, the same age as Mandy -and last Thursday, a friend of theirs found her lying in her yard. She was life-flighted to a hospital in Pittsburgh but passed away late Friday night. My son, her boys and my nephew, growing up, were quite the foursome! Always up to something and often, getting into little scrapes here and there. Nothing really bad back then, just boys, being boys -rough riding with their bicycles around town and such, building ramps for skate boards and really just pretty much being a general nuisance at times with those escapades. And this lady often put up with all four of those boys at the same time so she probably should have been nominated for sainthood back then!

After leaving the funeral home, we stopped by to visit a bit with Charmaine -who used to own the restaurant where Mandy waitressed and/or tended bar for a about 5 years or so until Charmaine and her husband Jim, sold the place. Jim died last July though and then, Charmaine's Mom (who was one of the best friends I've ever had) passed away about 2 months ago, so it's been a rough year for her, along with her two sisters too who live near here. It was funny though when we pulled into her place tonight as Kurtis immediately asked Mandy if this is the place where they have the funny face trees? This was something new to me as I had no clue what he was referring to but Mandy knew immediately what it was. Charmaine and Jim have these funny, crazy, faces hanging on many of the big trees around their place and she was surprised that Kurtis thought of them right away considering he hasn't been to Charmaine's place in at least a year now. Funny, isn't it, the things kids remember?

While there, we learned too that a cousin of Charmaine's who happens to be my ex-sister-in-law's brother, is in the hospital as he had a heart attack either last night or early this a.m.! Brother! This guy has had a whole lot in recent years of medical issues but thankfully, he's always before been like the proverbial Timex -takes a licking and keeps on ticking! Considering he is only in his mid-to-late 50s, I sure do hope things go that way this time for him too!

Last night though was very upsetting for me but it turned out, it was all for nothing!

Mandy had planned to go out to our church last night to put the garbage out for the collection this morning. She's the sexton at our church so that's part of her job, you know. About 11 p.m., she started getting ready to go out there - yes, that late, but she can come and go as she pleases there. Well, I was busy on the computer and heard her getting ready to leave and then, the house was quiet. Except for me typing and of course, the tv on in the background.

I figured she'd be back home by midnight but then, I realized it was well beyond midnight -like about 1 a.m. and she hadn't come back. However, I figured no big deal, she probably stopped by the place where she worked a couple years ago to visit with the owner there a bit. Then it was 2 a.m. and she still hadn't returned so I thought then, boy she must be getting a real earful of stories of events around so will be interesting to hear about that stuff when she does get home.

By 3 a.m. and no Mandy yet, I was starting to get concerned. She never does things like that to me unless she calls and lets me know where she is and what's happening.

Before I knew it, it was well after 4 a.m. and still no show of her!!! By then, I was almost ready to call the police and see if there was an accident or something. Yes, I do still worry about my kids and often, more than any of them realize too!

By that time then, I was really concerned but also, was getting very, very sleepy so I decided I'd go to bed and hope that there was nothing bad going on, ya know.

When I went out to my room, I noticed the outside porch light was still on so I decided since it was starting to get daylight outside, to turn the light off. When I did that, I also noticed that there were two cars in our parking area out front too! What the heck!!! How did Mandy's car get there and when did she get home and upstairs without my noticing it?

In the meantime too -before I went to bed -I had posted on Facebook a note to her -"Time to come home, Mandy!" But seems like she was here, upstairs in bed the whole time I was sitting downstairs fretting away that something had happened to her!

When I got up this a.m. -after the kids had gone to school -she asked me what was behind that message and when I explained that I thought she was still out all that time, she informed me she had never left the house after all and that's why her car was still out front and why I hadn't heard her come home!

Tonight, she informed me that her boyfriend, Jeff, had seen my message and had asked her what that was all about and when she told him, he had howled laughing at my worrying over nothing!

Ya know, I do take great comfort though in saying to both Mandy and to Jeff, not to laugh too long or too hard over my doing that because in a few more years, their days to really worry about the whereabouts of their children will really have begun!

What goes around, does come around and especially is true for all parents and their children at some time or other!

Agreed?