I knew right away. "You got your hair cut!!" I groaned, with a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Then added (in my best exasperated teenaged protest voice), "MOTHER!!"
You'll recall that last week, when I talked to them, my mother (age 79) had had her cleaning lady over to dust and vacuum (despite coronavirus threats, warnings and restrictions), and was threatening to do this very thing if she had the opportunity.
"If you had SEEN me!!" protested my mother (who has had her hair washed & styled at a salon every Friday for as long as I can remember). "I couldn't go out of the house looking like that! [Some old family friends] video called us a few nights ago & I was SO embarrassed!"
"We're ALL looking 'like that' right now, Mom," I reminded her. Nope, she looked the worst, of course. (Insert eye roll icon here.) Her regular hairdresser is actually closing up shop for good, and had called to invite Mom to drop by and pick up some of her usual hair products. And while she was there, she offered (and Mom eagerly accepted) a haircut.
I said (not angrily, but flatly), "I'm done trying to reason with you. You know if you get sick, I can't come to see you, and that's all I'm going to say." Even if I could get on a plane (flights are very limited right now)(and who wants to fly right now unless they absolutely have to??), my home province is currently asking all out-of-province visitors to quarantine for 14 days when they get there.
I know they live in a small rural community, and there's not as many cases in that province as there are here -- the curve there has flattened and the numbers are beginning to decline -- but that doesn't mean the risk isn't there. Especially for seniors like my parents, with underlying health issues. (I may not have children, but these days, my parents are quite enough of a handful, I think...!)
I just keep thinking about what SHE would have said & done if I'd done something like that when I was a teenager...!!
You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here.
I always remember an aunt of mine (who worked with the elderly) saying to me that she had much more patience with the elderly, because, unlike children, they weren't necessarily deliberately disobeying or testing the boundaries. They just weren't processing things as well, and it wasn't their fault. hough that's not something we can usually say to them, as they take offence to any suggestion of deterioration. (I know I do. Lol!) Yes - the roles reverse!
ReplyDeleteYes, all you can do is remind her of the consequences. That if she gets sick, you can't go and visit her. Your dad might be left alone without her. And you can't visit him at the moment either.
The hairdresser should NOT have done her hair, though, and should have known better. Sigh.
Ugh, this is frustrating. We're dealing with a similar situation with other relatives and it is hard. It does feel like they are rebellious teenagers!
ReplyDeleteOh, how the tables turn!
ReplyDeleteOoof, that's such a frustrating situation! Sounds like you did everything you possibly could with that - it just feels like they should listen and see sense (sigh). It is really a strange feeling for the roles to reverse like that.
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