Mt. Pleasant Classical Academy

Have you ever been in the situation of where you have just so much on your
plate that you can’t see the plate, or the even table? That’s the situation
I feel I am in and have been in for weeks. So I was quite hesitant to leave
home and travel to my Dad’s for the weekend.. There was so much to do HERE, boys to supervise while they tested their various build devices. DH assured me that he would be present; “But will you supervise them? Will you make sure that they are working and not just talking?”

“I’ll keep them on task” he assured me again.

Dad turned 88 on Monday and on Saturday we were throwing a Birthday Party for him at my sister’s home up in Pennsylvania. There would be 35 - 40 people there for a sit-down dinner, and amazingly even though I never lived anywhere near where he now lives, I knew I would know most everyone there. And how could I not go to this birthday party?

Earlier in the week my sister had asked me to bring a cooked and sliced turkey, my chocolate cheesecake, and a triple batch of cauliflower salad appetizer. Somehow I fit all this kitchen work in so that by Friday at noon the preparations were completed. I was however, very hesitant to go. Would they get any work done on their Science Olympiad projects? Would the place fall apart without me? Of course it wouldn’t, but I also know how little is accomplished when the boys work on their own, and they have too much to do to just be left to guide themselves.

But how could I not now go to my Dad’s birthday party? This is the man who in August of ‘05 was diagnosed in Stage 4 Colon Cancer, and given about 6 months. It had metastasized to his liver, and just recently found in his lungs. He has fought the last 18 months by taking aggressive action to fight this cancer by undergoing 2 major liver operations; 4 more ablation procedures where the cancer cells in the liver are electrically zapped, and twice chemo put him into ICU for a couple weeks each time. He is a fighter though and believes that God will call him when it is his time but until then it is his job to fight by using all medical tools at his disposal. So, yes, he does have something very serious but is beating the
odds big time.

He also went on a month long cruise this winter in the Caribbean; amazingly, and he is all of 88. The cancer is there; it is growing, he’s on chemo again, and still fighting. We don’t know how long he will be with us, but we also aren’t asking that anymore.

So Military Kid and I headed NW to his home returning on Sunday afternoon. I’m glad I went, nice time, and it meant quite allot to him. It was also nice to get away from the Science Olympiad stresses too. When Dad retired back in ‘84 he was hired by a Brazilian company as a consultant. The company flew both my Dad and Mom to Brazil whenever he consulted for the company. These trips usually lasted a couple months and were always during our winter. So, back in ‘84, Jon, the Brazilian company’s new employee and his wife Bel were assigned the duty of being tour guide to my parents. The following years, whenever they were in town Jon and his wife were my parents guide. Jon is now the Plant Manager, and he and Bel have been to my parents home many, many times over the years. Imagine my Dad’s delight that Jon and Bel flew in just for my Dad’s party! From Brazil. It was the first time I got to met them too. We chatted allot, they are my age, and I’m hoping that their girls, 14 & 16yo will come to my home this summer for a month. They asked to take my boys for a month to help them learn Portuguese and
experience another country. Who would have known?

My brother didn’t come but sent flowers. Flowers are for the dead, my Dad always says. He semi-smiled as he looked at the flowers but said it just isn’t the same: rather had have him be there. Sis, less then 3 hrs drive wasn’t there either…..but the folks from Brazil flew in. I had a good time too, and who knows, maybe we’ll be going to Brazil soon.