A Field of Daizy's

My Dad is in the hospital

Thursday night I got a call from my stepmother that my dad had been vomiting all afternoon and now was vomiting blood.The ambulance was on it's way. I am within a couple minutes of their house and was there before the ambulance. He was on his feet, but obviously not well. He walked outside to the stretcher. His problem was a rip around his hiatal hernia from the retching. He will come home today.

My problem was with my stepmother. (My mother has been gone for 21 years.) They have been married for 17 years. She has no children of her own and doesn't understand the parent/child relationship. She has been sort of 'jealous' of me, because I am the 'apple of my dad's eye.' In fact someone once said as I walked up, here comes the one who puts the sparkle in Al's eye.

Audrey is 81 years old. She was raised in a different day and age than I. She has played the helpless female role. I am not. In fact, if I had been born centuries earlier, I probably would have been a warrior maiden. I face things head on, relax, go with the flow, or if need be tackle the 'onslaught' and fix it. I think this intimidates her. She has never spoken words to me before but has used her physical ailments(real and imagined), to keep my dad from being with me at times. When something has been planned, her ailments have 'flared up' and he was led to feel he had to cancel to help her. As soon as later in that same day to the day after the event, she was all better)

After my dad was back in his room after an endoscopy, the nurse was chatting about what had been said by the doctor. We were 'joshing' back and forth about what the doctor said dad couldn't eat for a while(a hamburger being #1 on the list). There were a couple times I could actually feel the nasty look from her. Then she said to me, "Will you let me talk!!!" This even startled the nurse. I told the nurse Audrey wanted to talk and left the room. In a few minutes the nurse came out and stood by me. I told her Audrey was my stepmother. The nurse replied she had figured that was the case, and talked with me a few minutes to calm me.

I just need God to help me not to get bitter. She wants to be #1 in Dad's life. She wants to be the female head of the family. That isn't the way it is. Dad is strong willed, just like me. He has a special relationship with his children, just like me. He has white hair, just like me. He faces life just like me. He gets along with people just like me. She has no one who can say "she is just like me". That is sad!

I can not create a close relationship with her. But I can be nice to her wihle dad is around and civil to her when he is not, at least for now.

Pray with me that I can maintain a Christ-like attitude!!!!