The Day Before Admission: A Happy Time with Mom

The day before my mother was admitted to the facility, the four of us—my mother, my two sisters, and I—spent time together at our family home.

When a family member is admitted to a facility, there is quite a lot for the family to do, and it keeps you busy.
We had to fill out numerous forms and write names on every single item she was bringing. If anything was missing, we had to go out and buy it.
This took a significant amount of time.

Exhausted, we bought bento boxes for lunch and ate them together.
My mother is certified as requiring long-term care level 2, but she has a good appetite. She finished almost everything that day, too.

After we finished our bento, perhaps due to our exhaustion, we all drifted off for a nap.
When I suddenly woke up, everyone was sleeping so peacefully.
I felt that it was such a calm and happy time.

When my father was alive, there were five of us, and after he passed away, the four of us spent many times like this together.
But this time, too, would soon come to an end.

I realized once again that happiness is found in these simple, everyday moments.

When I asked my mother, "What do you want to eat for dinner?"
"Sushi!" she replied immediately.

We went to the sushi restaurant our family had visited many times, and we enjoyed a delicious meal while chatting about trivial things.

That night, I told my mother, "Thank you for always cooking for our family."
Then my mother asked, "Is today Mother's Day?"
I hurriedly corrected her, saying, "Today is Tanabata!"

After my mother went to bed, I went to check on her in her room. Feeling lonely, I rubbed her back, but my mother, who is hard of hearing, said in a loud voice, "Is it morning? Is it time to get up?"
Panicking that it would be a disaster if she got up at this hour, I shouted, "It's still night, so go back to sleep!"

My mother has always been like that. Whenever I'm about to get sentimental, she comes back with something eccentric that makes me laugh.

Thinking that I wouldn't be able to have exchanges like this very often from now on, I left my mother's room.