I love my mother's sense of humor - and I love messing with her in dry, sarcastic and smartass ways. She's always a pretty good sport about it and I like to think that she gets a kick out of it too...most of the time. One of the things I think is funny about my mom - and mind you that at 73, she's still one of the hippest people you can talk to, is how she'll take some rather inopportune moments to have serious conversations.
And so it was yesterday, when I called to check in on my retired parents and other various family members that my mom is in the loop for info on. As I was wrapping up our phone conversation - or so I thought, my mom started the following in an oh-by-way:
Mom: Oh, I meant to tell you that we've redone our wills so....
Now is where I take the opportunity to run with my long running joke about my older sister being the highly favored one in the family, even well into our adult years...
Me: Why are you telling ME this - it's not as if I don't know that it's all going to be left to Lynne anyway, the rest of us will just take whatever Lynne doesn't get...
Mom, trying not to laugh even the slightest - yet failing: Oh baloney, now LISTEN (tone getting serious) I have your sister Kerrin (as if I'd forgotten who Kerrin, my younger sister is...or where she stands in the family tree) as having power of attorney and you as a back up (story of my life, middle child, even in adult years) so if anything happens and Kerrin can't be reached...
Me: Listen, I'm driving to work, but I feel like you're trying to tell me something - maybe holding back a bit...
Mom, again trying not to laugh: No...stop for a minute and just listen...I don't want any extraordinary measures taken to prolong things if something happens...
Me: Ok, once again I'll ask you if you have something to tell me - some bad news perhaps?
Mom, still trying not to laugh and desperately trying to get some important information to her son, though it appears from the tone of her trying not to laugh and deliver said information, that she realizes she may have timed this conversation poorly - but there's no going back: NO...now just listen, if for whatever reason they can't find Kerrin, you'll have to make decisions and I don't want anything prolonged - no life support if...
Me, unable to resist being a smartass: Ok, ok...you know I work a lot, but I promise you, I'll make arrangements to leave and pull a plug if that's what you want - I gotta say that there might be a better time to have this kind of conversation - I mean, I'm trying to merge onto 271 in highway speed traffic, for the LOVE OF GOD...
Mom, caving and laughing through her reply: Alright, I'm gonna hang up and let you merge...
Me: Thanks, love you...talk to ya!
For those of you who know me and may have ever wondered where I get my dry sense of humor from, some of it comes from my mom, the rest of it is cultivated - and daily. Happy Mother's Day to all of you mothers!
2 comments:
I love it, Chris. She must be a very special mom.
Funny thing is I can hear her voice and the exact tone saying all of that. I did enjoy the time getting to know her and Uncle Steve better when I was in DC.
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