Written on 8-25-19.
Today is Danielle’s 24th birthday. She’s 24 on the 25th! We already celebrated with her on the way to Lakewood. Today, she celebrated again when the Edgertons (sans Becca) flew to have lunch with her in Pagosa Springs. Our children are now 24 and 26.
I will have slept on three very different beds in three days after tonight’s sleep. Two days ago, I spent the night in Mom’s hospital room, #361, at St. Anthony’s after her shoulder replacement surgery. It was her second night, but my first. She wanted some company, and I was the logical, best choice. Bev and Belinda went home with Dad, and I slept on the leathery twin bed that was right under the window. Mom and I both slept well, so it was a good decision. I believe it comforted her to know I was there.
Last night, it was back to Mom and Dad’s house and the downstairs bedroom with the two twin beds. One is really noisy/squeaky, so I stopped sleeping on that one many visits ago. I move around a lot compared to Belinda. B, the still sleeper, slept on that one, and I got the quieter one again.
While there, I had my first and only dream about Dale since he died just over a year ago. I had received an e-mail from Shutterfly that asked if I remembered some photos from eleven years ago recently. I’ve gotten those before, and I normally delete them without going to their site to see the rest. Before it had arrived in my inbox, though, I had been thinking about and remembering a photo that had Dale, Craig, and Dad leaning against some vehicle in Eric and Amanda’s driveway. Lo and behold, this group of photos had that photo and one more that was only slightly different.
Because of our road trip and seeing those photos, I was set up to dream the dream that I had. I was driving our truck, and Belinda was with me. We had not left for our trip just yet, but I told B that we were just previewing where we were going to go. Then I saw a large red brick wall on the side of a building. Centered on that wall, was a single door, and it instantly reminded me of the door that is in the middle on the side of Aztec Media. Out of the dark came a figure, a striking figure with a large belly. At first, I didn’t know if it was Dale, although the silhouette looked very much like him. Then I saw and knew that it was Dale. As soon as I recognized him, I said to Belinda, “There’s your dad!”
Like other dreams that are similar to this one, the more I wanted to get near the person, the farther away he became. I turned the steering wheel towards the building, but the truck stubbornly drove the other way. It was like turning a steering wheel on an amusement park ride. Futile.
And, like the other dreams of loved ones who have left this earth, chills ran up and down my body. Sometimes, the chills (or flames or bolts of electricity) center on my neck and brain, but these went all over. And then he was gone, and the chills went away.
In one other way, I was set up to have this dream, too, and that has to do with our Alto that we are picking up in five days. On the Facebook group titled Altoistes, they have a thing where members post when they have a “sighting” of another Alto when out on the open road. Belinda and I had our first “sighting” just outside of Johnson Village. I jolted B out of her nap to make sure she saw it, too.
Seeing Dale like that in my dream was similar to that. It was better than seeing a silly camper on the highway, of course, but it was also a rare and beautiful thing, and I felt fortunate to have it happen.
That’s enough for now. We have another long day tomorrow as we head from Iowa City to Niagara Falls. I have yet to write about my last round of golf before we left, and it will be fun to write about that.
Happy 24th birthday, Danielle!
Until next time…
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