It all started a few years ago when my dad just up and walked out with his secretary without even as much as a "goodbye" or anything! My mom and I had no choice but to pickup and start out where they had left off working the family business together. Our secretary was my dad's first wife's sister, and I think he was seeing her all along during his 22-year marriage to my mom. It might have also been the reason for his first divorce after his 7-year marriage to his first wife, I don't know for sure. But I do know it changed all of our lives over night! My mom contacted the business accountant and found that there was enough money in the till to purchase a car which she badly needed for transportation since dad took the only car we had when he left.
Her new car was an old, used one. But at least it ran good, and was good with the gas mileage. Our first weekend without dad proved to be a rough one. Mom and I had decided to drive to the mountains for a picnic and some well-deserved R&R, which was her way of coping with the loss of what she called, "That creep!" I knew she missed him though, and hadn't said anything bad about him yet. The picnic went well, but on the way back home another driver hit us broadside and totaled mom's new (old) car! She was all right, and insurance replaced the old car within a month with a much newer one.
I was, on the other hand, not so well off! The accident had taken its toll on me leaving me with 3 broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder. Ouch! I don't know which hurt worse, the shoulder or the ribs! One thing was clear – I needed help to do some basic things, like peeing! Of course my mom had made it clear she would help me with any problems that would arise from the accident, and since I couldn't put my arms forward to unzip my pants or anything like that, she had to help me by holding my pecker while I pissed into the toilet.
The first couple of times were really something! She would tell me when she was ready, and when I let loose with a full stream, it would miss the toilet splashing all over the place! I laughed at her, and mumbled something about her lack of aim, but she would reply about how much harder it was for a guy to keep the toilet clean then she had previously thought! It was a good lesson for her to learn.
This went on for 6 weeks while I was recovering. Finally, the time came when I could begin to work my arms and shoulder without too much problem, and told her I was ready to "take over my personal chores again..." She seemed to act like she was bothered by that, a reaction that surprised me since I thought she couldn't wait to stop helping me like that!
A few days later, she made a comment about it. "Jeff, it still hasn't been all that long since the accident, and if you have days where your arms or shoulder are bothering you, please feel free to ask me for my help. I don't mind, really I don't."
Her voice was almost pleading with me! I decided to take advantage of the situation and the next day, I told her my muscles were really stiff for some reason, and would need her help in the bathroom. Up until now, I had been able to take baths and dress quite well with the help of a long handled "gripper" designed to pick up golf balls and the like. I had used this "gripper" to help me wash hard to reach places in the bath, pull my pants up when getting dressed, and get my shirts in place so my mom would only have to button the buttons and do the zipping parts. Well, for some reason I had "misplaced" the gripper and now needed her help with a few more things than before! Her eyes actually lit up! I couldn't believe how excited she became or how willing she was to dive right in and help me with all the little things I "now" needed help with. If I had known (or thought of) it before, I'd have "lost" that thing very early on! But you know what they say, "Better late than never..."
