I went back down stairs and started dishing up food for everyone. Nel had left us a choice of mashed potatoes or boiled potatoes, with some kind of processed beef in a thick onion gravy, and beans. It was nice. After dinner I made everyone tea, and then went up to see if dad had woken up yet.
As I walked into dad's room, dad was still lying on his back but with his knees down now, awake, pressing the light switch as hard as he could into the position it was already in. "What are you doing, dad?" It took a while for him to react, "..can't 'member..." "That's the light switch..." after another minute or so he finally let go of the light switch. When he seemed alert enough, I asked "Which are the keys to the fort?" holding up his huge bundle of keys to him. Dad didn't reply, but then mumbled, "Sounds like you're losing some of your brain function!" and after a pause, he added, "Sounds like I have to help you get some brain back..."
Then suddenly dad grabbed the hospital bed trapeze above his head with both hands and concentrated hard with violently shaking arms... "What are you doing, dad?" No reply. Then dad lifted his entire body off the bed and hung there a few inches from the mattress for a few seconds, before he monkeyed himself into a sitting upright position about 30 cm further to the head board than he had been. Impressive. But then he sat staring into the blanket for quite a while, as if he had no idea where he was. And then he uttered a tiny laugh. "What are you laughing at?" "Me... end brain... I'm at end brain... and then I'll be bollocks!"
Dad sat for a while longer, apparently very far away. At some point he lowered his head a bit and started making snoring noises. "Are you going to sleep?" "Not yet." The reply had been immediate, so somehow dad wasn't far away at all... So I tried again: "Can you show me which are the fort keys?" "The what? Where are they?" So I put the keys in his hand. Dad grabbed the key ring and stared at it. He thought for a long, long time. But to me it seemed like he was completely elsewhere. Then suddenly he laughed at himself, and I understood he'd been trying to focus his thoughts on what he had to do. "Where are they?—What is the problem exactly?" Poor dad. "It's not important dad. I can just try them all." "Aaaah okay." He looked relieved.
"Where are my glasses?"
"Here they are," so I helped him put them on. I didn't know why though, maybe so he could see the keys properly? But I thought we'd already let that go... "Are your glasses going?" dad asked. "Mine? No... you're wearing yours though." "Yeah I know."
After a while longer of dad seeming to be far away, but perhaps being a lot more alert than I understood, dad said, "'Cause I'm about to go and have a rest I think." "Okay." I stood up to help him lie down, and dad promptly stuck out his head for a kiss. I gave dad a kiss on his cheek, and dad gave me a kiss on mine. A huge, wet, sloppy one. I remember those from yeeeeears ago! Back when I was tiny! Those always made me say, "Yuck!" I didn't this time though.
Dad lay down and started mumbling "Where are all my things!" "Which things?" "All off them, I'm going to need some more. And I need a rest before people start coming in again." "It's evening now dad, no-one's going to come today any more." "Aaah," that was good news to dad. But he still needed all his things (did he mean his medicine?), so I pointed at his bedside table... full of things... "Naah." it took a while to find out he meant mum and Maya. Because his things had to bring him lunch... "Would you like some dinner?" "Yeah..." I then had to untwist the idea of no-one coming any more not meaning that mum and Maya weren't going to come... so I assured dad I'd let mum and Maya know dad wanted to see them. Dad relaxed, so I said good bye. I gave him another kiss on his cheek (and I got another wet and sloppy one back), and stroked his head. He seemed to like it.
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