I spoke to the nurse and picked up the list of facilities before I went in to see Mom. She was sitting up in bed, watching Young and Restless when I walked in.
“There you are! I thought something had happened to you since you hadn’t been here for so long.”
Guilt trip, check. “Hi Mom,” I said, ignoring her remark. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I got hit by a truck. Please get me out of here, Holly, I need to go home and sleep in my own bed.”
I raised an eyebrow and said, “You’re not going home right away, Mom. Remember?”
“Oh, Holly. It’s out of my system now. That’s the hard part. I don’t need to sit in one of those fancy hospitals and listen to a bunch of fancy words. I know I need to stop drinking. I heard everything the doctor had to say about it.”
“I’m not taking you home,” I said.
“Holly…”
“No Mother, listen. I am not taking you home. I can’t force you to go to rehab, but I’m done with this. I am ready to have my own life and I can’t do that because I’m always trying to fix yours. So here’s the deal. You go to rehab and I will do everything I can do to make sure it all goes smoothly for you. I’ll hire someone while you’re gone to clean up and do all the repairs that the house needs and when you get out, I will still be around. If you refuse to go, then you walk out of here on your own and you stay on your own. I’m finished with all of this mother, I’m done.”
Mom looked shocked. It was the first time ever that I had threatened to walk away. I wasn’t just making threats either. I was ready to follow through on that promise. My mother looked like she believed it too. I expected tears or an argument so I was surprised when she simply said, “Okay.”
I waited for the rest. When it didn’t come I replied, “Good, okay. I’m going by the house today to pack you a bag. The nurse says you will likely be discharged tomorrow so I have to work fast. You behave okay?”
My mother smiled and said, “You forget which one of us is the mother.”
I bent and kissed her on the forehead and said, “Hopefully that will change soon.”