Journey of a 1000 miles

Well, as the story goes, there will be updates on the journey.
My updates are numbered but not dead.
Thus far, I have shed (losing is such an ambiguous word) 70 pounds of my former self. I am feeling more in tune with my relationship with food. I don’t hate the prospect of eating now, and that is a big step. I am able to eat a whole egg (with cheese no less!) and seems to be an earmark in my world. Earmarks… hmm.. getting bad press lately, but they do chronicle the way. Another first, is being able to climb 6 flights of stairs to my office every morning. I admit I was forced into the project about a month ago, when the power went out in the building and in order to get to my desk, I had to hike. But, like the whole journey thus far, it was a growing (and hopefully shrinking) experience. I still have issues with the protein count, but that is getting better.
My reference to death above should be tongue in cheek, but it actually hits closer to home than that. Early February, my mom took a fall in the living room of her place and upon ER analyses, and a CAT scan, we discovered she has a cerebral hemorrhage on the right side of her brain. Not good news. It is terminal, as most of life is. I was sort of in a dream state when they mentioned Hospice, and skilled care nursing homes. Sarah (owner of Maple House) insisted that she come back and her staff would take care of Mom. Angels have a way of visiting us when we need them.
So, now every day I go to Maple House and spend time with my bed ridden mother, trying to anticipate her needs. She is on a morphine gel applied to her wrists (minor stroke means she has trouble swallowing) every 4 hours. This seems to relieve any discomfort she might have. Her spirits are OK. I put my headset to her ear so she can talk to my brothers and aunt. We talk about dying. She said, "Well, if you know what is right and wrong and live your life the way you should, why would you be afraid of dying?" Good point mom. Still teaching after all these years. The other day, she asked me who the lady was sitting next to me. WHAT lady? Well, the lady that visits her and she is so nice… hmm. I asked her what she looked like, to which she said, "well my eyesight is not so good, and so I can’t tell". Ok. Little moments of shifting to the other side. Like birth, some of us come in with a bang and go out the same way. While others, take their time (see 36 hour labors) with their entrances and exits.
Other than that, the journey continues. Sightseeing has never been so good.