NAGGING IS NOT ALWAYS WRONG

Memories come as memories come, unsolicited, on their own schedule. Thus this one came.

The dining room chair in front of the ‘west facing’ deck door allowed Paul to feed his lifelong addiction to the sun.

 Well into his second year of AML treatment  he spent hours in that chair allowing the rays of the sun to bake his cancer weary body.  This day he sat, he read, he dozed.  Until he did more dozing than reading. His head nodded, snapped upright. His body swayed- always to the left. Perhaps because he was left handed.

“Paul, you’re going to fall out that chair,” I said

“Stop nagging.”

He dozed, he nodded, he swayed. “Honey, you are going to fall out of your chair.”

“Will you stop nagging.”

He dozed, he nodded, he swayed. “Paul”, I said more harshly. “You are going to fall out of that chair. Why don’t you move to the living room.”

“And what don’t you stop nagging.”

He dozed, he nodded, he fell out the chair. I ran to him. He was unhurt. He looked up at me, “Why did you quit nagging?” One of our good days at the end.