Peace out

I don't think the gray on the beard is so noticeable in this shot. Until now that I've said it. Now you are thinking, oh, that's not blond or lighting. You probably still haven't noticed the chest hair is gray too... until now. Still the unfairness of it all is he really doesn't have gray hair on the top of his head. Neither of them do.
 A few years ago at a preschool event (so, it was a few more than a few) my mother-in-law suddenly reached over and tapped my head and demanded, "What is this?" It was the gray roots growing out (right in the center of my forehead*).  Mean while, there I was suddenly yanked from the life of all the other moms (young) back to reality (old).
 The words make you notice. We are just one month into our 3 month turn of not being grandma-caretakers but every few days a friend will ask, often with a little hesitation, "How's your mom?" (I tend to assume the hesitation translates, "Is she still alive?") The answer is, other than, "She's still alive," that I'm not sure and I'm trying to keep it that way. But thank you for reminding me. The thing is, I tend to have kind friends. And while I prefer them to the sort who don't care about one's life I'm trying to pretend right now my mom is not my life. For 24 years I have had the same feeling about, the "How's your son?" query. If you have a child with those oh so special needs you begin to notice the special inflection on the "how". If you want advice on how as a friend to show your concern ...I have none because if no one asked, or acknowledged this wasn't just your usual, "hey, how're the kids?" I'd be offended too.
 In case you did the math, I'm not including 5 of the eldest's 29 years. That's because since around the last set of shunt revisions everyone knew that either things were stable or I'd be emailing everybody. With the 96 year old they don't assume stability (smart friends).
 In conclusion: I can touch-up my gray hair , I can even use a side part to hide it nicely (my own comb-over) but there is no escaping that it's there. Just don't point it out on the sailboat -and don't tell my mother-in-law I told that story on her.

*if asked for a bed time story my mother was notorious for replying, "There was a little girl who had a little curl, right in the center of her forehead. And when she was good she was very very good and when she was bad she was horrid." I was convinced this was written just for me. And now I think it caused the gray...