One day last week, as I sat dutifully in my office at work, my phone rang.
Me: Hello?
Voice: Hi NM, this is RT (a friend of mine). I’m here at the Hills Bank and so is your mother.
Me: What? She is?!
RT: Yes… she has her walker and the dog. She seems a little confused.
Me: I’ll be right there…
RT: I can take her home if you’d like….
Me: No, I’ll come. Thanks RT.
RT: I’ll stay here with her till you get here.
Me: Thank you.
Many thoughts went through my mind as I drove the mile to the bank. What was she doing there? Trying to withdraw money? Checking her accounts? Getting a free cup of coffee?
I spot the three of them as I turn into the parking lot… in the shade of the bank entrance, Grandma seated on her walker, panting dog at her feet, RT standing beside them. RT approaches the car as I shut off the motor.
RT: She’s afraid you’re going to be mad at her.
I breathe a sigh of relief. She hasn’t completely lost her mind…. she knows she’s in trouble.
I get out of the car and walk to Grandma. I ask her what she thought she was doing.
G: I went for a walk. I made a wrong turn or something, but then I saw the grocery store and knew where I was. I just didn’t know how to get back. I saw the bank so I came here.
The dog is in need of water. Grandma is sweating.
Me: Let’s go home.
RT offers to load the walker into the back of his pickup. I take Grandma and Sam in my car.
Me: Mom… it isn’t safe to take dogs out in this heat. (appealing to her dog-sense). Poor Sam can’t handle mid-day temperatures.
G: I didn’t plan to go that far. We were just taking a walk. I think it’s good for my arthritis. DH told me I should walk.
Me: He didn’t tell you to walk as far as the bank! What if you had fallen? What if Sam had gotten away from you? (Fat chance and yes, pun intended…)
We arrive home, unload the walker, reiterate our appreciation to RT and as he leaves, go in the house. We continue to discuss the potential problems venturing away from home alone could cause. She says she is sorry.
Later that evening, I get a message from a friend who works at the bank. She had been working at the drive-thru when Grandma and Sam “rolled up”. Grandma had pointed to the highway and asked if that was the way back to the town where D1 is located. My friend, not realizing Grandma lived with us now (a few blocks from the bank) thought she had walked all the way from D1 and offered to get her a ride back. That was when RT came into the bank, recognized Grandma and called me.
Grandma is no longer allowed to cross the street. We’ve arranged for Ruby to come by each day to walk with her if she wants (or she can take short strolls along the sidewalk around our house when we are home). She is also walking around the outside of the house several times a day and anxious to meet the neighbors who live nearby.
I’m thinking about printing up flyers to distribute with Grandma’s picture and our address, just in case she gets off course again. (A “Neighborhood Grandma Watch”) I had thought about getting a microchip to put under her skin but it turns out those are only for animals (not humans, except in science fiction movies). Someone suggested an electronic monitoring bracelet. If Grandma becomes a repeat offender, we may need to look into it. Actually, RT is a retired Federal parole/probation officer - I bet he could hook us up.
So ends Episode 29
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