I Am Turning Into My Grandmother!
"The kids are driving me nuts!" I overheard my grandmother say to her sister Zola.
"What did we do?" I whispered to my mother. "The boys and I have been getting along good today."
"She doesn't mean just her grandkids," Mother whispered back. "She means the whole family, even the grown-ups!"
June 23, 1967, was a tough day for all of us. We were at my beloved grandfather's funeral. Grandpa Ralph had died unexpectedly at the age of 60 of a heart attack.
When you're younger, sometimes you assume something is your fault when it has nothing to do with you. "That's how Grandma Virgie talks," my mother explained. "You kids didn't do anything wrong," Mother assured me.
I am not disrespecting my grandmother. As a matter of fact, I understand her better, and I think I have developed some of her responses. People drive me nuts, too. Grandma, I finally feel your pain. I was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) in 2017, so fatigue and stress is something I have to manage daily.
Managing MDS
Last year, I attended a webinar about coping with MDS sponsored by the MDS Foundation. MDS is a type of blood cancer caused by bone marrow failure. Here are some tips I learned: You have to advocate for yourself. Tell people what you need. Let them know when you need help. If you aren't up to a task, say so. If they are driving you nuts... tell them you need to rest.
Things that drive me nuts!
Scam phone calls. Don't you hate it when you expect an important call, then the phone rings, you answer only to hear a recording telling you that the warranty on your vehicle is about to expire? Liar, Liar! Pants on fire! By the way, the call where they ask you, "Can you hear me now?" HANG UP! They want to record your voice saying you agreed to purchase something.
People who give the one-finger salute. Hey, I honked at you because I thought my car was in your blind spot. You looked like you were coming into my lane! Does that one finger show us your age or I.Q.?
I don't trust adults who come to my door selling things. Just because they have a lanyard around their neck and are carrying a clipboard doesn't mean that they are legitimate. Research has proven that criminals case the houses they are going to burglarize. Go ahead and huff off my porch when I tell you I don't want to buy.
Now when children are selling for their schools, it's hard for me to turn them down. I try to be pleasant and say something like, "Oh, honey, I have already bought my Girl Scout cookies; if I eat any more cookies, I won't fit through my front door!" I remember how much nerve it took me to muster to sell campfire candy when I was in grade school.
Politics on Facebook! Some people like to have lively political discussions. That's not me. Trashing people who didn't vote for your candidate is not how friends should talk to each other.
Plan of action
Sometimes I wonder what caused my crankiness. Was it blood cancer or my age? It seems instead of embracing my sensitive inner child; I have embraced my inner Miss Cranky Pants. Cancer or not, we have to take care of ourselves, physically and emotionally.
It looks like I have to:
- Hang up on scam calls or don't answer.
- Ignore the road rage hotheads. If I were to respond, they might assault me with their vehicle.
- Politely dismiss the door-to-door salespeople. Buy from the children when I can.
- Keep scrolling on Facebook when there is drama.
Oh, wouldn't you know it! My phone is ringing.
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