Mom's orientation to place is very fuzzy these days. On a drive around south Minneapolis recently she asked repeatedly if we were in Miami and I would tell her as gently as possible that this is Minneapolis and we live here now. "Isn't that where Mar moved to?" "Yes, she lives here now, too." (Her orientation to others is also a wee bit fuzzy.) We had this conversation off and on for about 45 minutes and I was getting used to answering the same question in a variety of ways to keep it interesting for both of us. So I was taken completely off guard when mom asked if we were in Harlem.
"I don't think so...does this look like Harlem?"
"Well, not exactly..."
"Have you ever been to Harlem?" trying to keep my voice in a conversational, just-having-a-little-chit-chat tone.
"Oh, yeah...me and George used to drive around there all the time. It was real fun."
"You and Dad used to drive around Harlem?" trying desperately to remember any story of them being in Harlem at any time.
"Oh, yeah, we'd drive over to Harlem from Miami Springs and just go up and down the streets. It was real nice."
For the record, Harlem and Miami Springs are very far apart but for mom Harlem was just out the window so we soaked it in: blue skies, many green trees, miles of single family homes with matching yards, wind blowing hard and kicking up dirt and dust, highways and lots and lots of cars. Although I've never been to Harlem, who knows, maybe it looks alot like south Minneapolis.
