The Roof Above by Gail Dwyer
Author:Gail Dwyer [Dwyer, Gail]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Black Rose Writing
Published: 2024-02-15T00:00:00+00:00
chapter 21
October 2004
Clarksville, Tennessee
My father called as I walked in the door after yoga. He got right to the point. âIâm sorry, Kel. Iâve got to reschedule my visit.â
âOh, why?â I whined. When I realized how I sounded, I tried to take it back. âI mean, itâs okay. I was looking forward to seeing youâthatâs all. No big deal. Sure. Weâll reschedule.â
Iâd been counting down the days until his visit. After Matt left mid-August, the summer dragged on until the humidity lifted. Once the leaves turned and fell and formed a rug of crunchy faded colors on the dead grass, Iâd circled on the kitchen calendar the date my father was coming. My body went limp when he said he had to cancel.
âIâm sorry, Kelly. Iâll get down. What about Thanksgiving? Or Christmas? Or are you planning to come home?â
âI donât know, Dad. I donât know what Iâm doing. Why do you have to cancel?â Whatâs more important than your oldest daughter, who has been alone in Tennessee since August? Not saying that out loud took levels of maturity I didnât know I had.
âItâs Gram.â His voice cracked.
Oh, no! My heart dropped and my guilt multiplied. âWhatâs wrong?â
âSheâs healthy physically, but she needs more care.â
I stood perfectly still. âDad? Is she okay?â
He paused before replying, âSheâs okay. But itâs hard on Brendan. He and Teresa canât leave her alone. Someone needs to be with her around the clock, and theyâre both working.â
My grandmother was a five-foot dynamo, who had been married to a drunk. My grandfather died of a heart attack when my dad was twenty-one, and according to the McGowans, even when my grandfather was around, he wasnât around, so Gram raised six kids by herself, instilling the fear of God in them, but with a nurturing heart. My father, his three brothers, and two sisters adored her. We all did.
âShe needs to go into a nursing home. The move-in date is the Saturday Iâm supposed to fly to Nashville. Iâm sorry, Kelly.â
âI understand. Thatâs so sad. Should I take a long weekend and fly up and see her?â
âThatâs nice of you to offer, hon, but I donât think sheâd recognize you. Sometimes she knows me, sometimes she doesnât.â He spoke with sadness and resignation.
My heart sank thinking about how much Iâd looked forward to seeing my father, but I was glad he was going to help with Gram. Since my parents split up, my father visited his mother and brothers in Dorchester on most weekends, and that made me happy. My mother hadnât been a fan of the McGowan family. When we grew up, we saw them once a year, on Christmas Eve, and my mother never came.
âYou know what? Sara talked about visiting sometime. Maybe theyâll be able to come up. Itâll all work out.â
We talked about Cousin Richard, who had recently come out of the closet. His parents, Uncle Gerard and Aunt Rita, who lived on the top floor in the same double-decker as Uncle Brendan and Aunt Teresa, were accepting, according to my father, but not sure what to do.
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