Life and Lemon Pie

I don't like lemonade. So, that old adage, "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade" simply does not cut it for me. Lemon pie is more fitting. Smooth, tart, lemony goodness on a flaky, tender crust, topped with fluffy golden-hued meringue is better.


And it is loved by so many. Not only by me. By My Mom.  My blue suede brother - I think. My Uncle Stan likes it.  He had 2 pieces of my lemon pie the other night.  My Sweetheart likes it. And My Sweetheart's Father likes it. In fact, he LOVES it. Anything lemony is a good thing for him.


My Sweetheart's Father started having health issues last fall.  Not just minor health issues.  Big health issues. From about October on he spent most of the time in different hospitals. Around Christmas time we thought, every time we went to visit him, that maybe this would be the last time. He was chauffeured many times in the past few months in an ambulance.


At his worst, we wondered if he's survive the ambulance trip.


He did. He rallied.  Prayers were answered.  Well, I know that prayers are always answered.  These particular prayers were answered in the way we like them to be answered. With more mortal life.


But with those answered prayers of more mortal  life, the family had to make some difficult decisions. The unit that My Sweetheart's Father lived in for close to 10 years was let go. His 'stuff' was divvied up. And My Sweetheart's Frail Father was moved to a long term care home an hour away. We, My Sweetheart and I, picked him up one day at the hospital in the city, and drove him to his new temporary home. On the way there, we drove past our farm- our home that has been in the family for over 100 years now.  The farm that My Sweetheart's Father grew up on, the farm where his siblings were raised, the farm where he and his late wife  raised his beautiful daughters and My Sweetheart on,  the farm where we have lived as a married couple for 18 years. As we drove past the farm I was watching him from my spot in the back seat. I took a picture of him as he was looking nostalgically down the road that he had driven hundreds of times before.  I wondered what was going through his mind . I wondered when the last time he had been out to the farm was. I know it was before Thanksgiving, but I don't remember just what day it had been.  I wondered what I had served him for a meal that day. I wish I would have given him a little bit bigger piece of dessert. My Sweetheart's Father is diabetic, and I am the one who was very strict about dessert time when he was out. I was strict about every meal when he was out. I had sugar free syrup in the cupboard for waffle brunches, sugar free ice cream in the freezer for treat nights, sugar free cookies in the pantry for times when he came out unexpectedly.


Yesterday, after church, we went to visit My Sweetheart's Father in the care home. We drove the hour down the highway, picked up Subway sandwiches and pop for DD, DS, My Sweetheart and I, and went to the care home. Along with the Subway Sandwiches, My Sweetheart had, in hand, the last piece of lemon pie that I had baked the day before.


My Sweetheart's Father doesn't have much of an appetite. But, he lit into that lemon pie. "It doesn't taste very lemony," he said to me. I guess his taste buds aren't that good. But that's okay. He had a piece of lemon pie. A big piece. And I'm glad I made lemon pie instead of lemonade.