This Blog/website exists because of the valuable lesson I learned or a gift placed in front of me, having my mother-in-law Gladys live with my wife and me for the last part of her existence. The importance of storytelling and sharing of events helped mold us and our views of the world—the significance of being creative in our timing and delivery. This was like life for me growing up, and I had two working parents who let my brothers, sister, and I be feral. Left to our creative way of entertaining ourselves during the day and evening, we were asked, “What did you do today ?” It was your time to have the whole family’s attention. It was time to weave a story of the daily happenings in our family; the more attractive you made it, the longer you had the stage. Hence, we became great storytellers able to heighten whatever our day presented us.
When Gladys, my Mother-in-law, moved in with us, she would find new recipes for my wife and me to prepare for her. She was an exquisite cook in her day, and everything she prepared was over-the-top good. My wife and I were both working, and like most couples, we would try to have a meal with each other three times a week and then on the weekends. Gladys was hell-bent on having an evening meal prepared for her every night. At first, it was not easy, but it became a routine for Gladys to find new recipes. Kathy prepared the meals, and I grocery-shopped and did dishes. After dinner and after dessert ( I gained over 20 lbs), we would remain at the table and discuss the taste and the ease of preparation. then the question was asked,” Do-Over ?” Rarely would we, but it was if Caesar had given the thumbs up or down. The best part of preparing to eat and judging was Gladys would tell a story of her life of 90 years, which is the gift we received. You can do over recipes, but you can not do over over life.
