Sunday, August 22, 2021

Sunday, August 22, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2008. It was labor day weekend and naturally we were in the hospital. Peter's brother and family came to visit from Boston, and they spent some time with Mattie. Miki, Mattie's nurse, understood how important it was for us to leave the hospital unit and go outside. The second floor of the hospital had this wonderful outdoor space, including a rock and rose garden. Two things we all liked a lot. So we went to the garden that day, and Miki timed when she had to leave the 5th floor of the hospital to come find us and administer meds in the garden. I will always be very impressed by the compassion and competency of Mattie's nurses. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins. 

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 37,705,071
• Number of people who died from the virus: 628,498

This was the state of affairs today! Sunny is NOT happy with me. He misses his long walks and time with me. Now I am so busy, that our walks are short! I really debated boarding Sunny while I had to pack, but I am trying to find a way to manage his needs and get everything done. But with movers coming on the scene, I have to keep a close eye on Sunny because he has shown me he can't be trusted. I will never forget how horrific it was when he went missing in Oakton for two hours several weeks ago. 

I am trying to wrap my head around the fact that the movers are coming on Wednesday. I have only three more nights in our DC home. Peter and I have been working around the clock to move things... as we rented a U-Haul again this weekend. We have moved all contents in drawers, cabinets, and closets for the most part. I still have to move the kitchen and bathroom items over the next two days. But we have been doing back breaking work, on top of the emotional work of moving out of our space. 

This red clay vase was something Mattie made for me, and his art therapists helped me make tissue paper roses. Mattie gave this to me on Valentine's Day of 2009. Needless to say, the vase is coming with me. 

This Italian marquetry music box actually contains Mattie's ashes. On top you can see  hand and foot prints of Mattie's.

I found this book today. The title of it is, "Mattie saves the day and defeats the evil bone bugs." Inside are hand drawn photos. But it is a flip book, so as you flip the pages quickly, it looks like it is telling a visual story. 

Super Mattie fighting a bone bug! We helped Mattie visual cancer in his body as bugs. He understood bugs, and though he was fascinated by them, he did not want them invading his body. Mattie understood that chemotherapy was the way to fight back the bone bugs, and though he was scared, he trusted that we were making the best decision possible to get him better.