eye drops and fried fish

I've been at Obi-wan's (Big Buddy's) about every night this week. He is supposed to be getting eye drops in his eyes 3 times a day, so B goes in the morning and I go at night when B is bathing the kids. He could get his nurse to do the third time, but refuses to remind her, saying it's her job to think of these things. I told him it's his eyes that will be affected and not hers- but he's a stubborn man. It has been really nice to be there without my two kids causing constant distraction and mayhem- the tv does enough of that. Big Buddy keeps it several decibels louder than his voice, so I have to sit real close to him and pay attention, but when I do- oh the stories I hear.

The sad stories are the ones some 80 years old or so where he has grudges or unforgiveness. Then there are the beauties where he laments this or that and confesses to have done likewise, then there are the real gems where he explains to me how to slaughter a pig. I found out that the tenderloin meat is from the spine of the pig. Big Buddy has a dream that he can teach me to slaughter and cut up a hog. He got a great laugh when he saw the disgust on my face. He said it would be so fun. I said it sounded horrid. He corrected me saying it would be educational.

He told me how he never got to go to school much, only when it rained and he trudged through a mile of mud- no one else showed up because the mud was too bad, but Big Buddy was desperate to learn, so he went. Right now he is looking forward to being able to read his bible again. He said he hasn't been able to read it in years due to the cataracts and now that his eyes are getting well, he'll have new glasses made and be able to read again.
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MJ called to set up reading again, but I told her I just couldn't. I need my 2 with my kids after keeping 2 extra boys 3 days a week. She asked if I could make her up 6 months of homework and I told her I couldn't do that either. MJ and I have been meeting for years, but she is horribly inconsistent and when I made her homework, she wouldn't do it. I felt so bad telling her no, but told her she could use the old homework I had made for her and the books we had. I felt that I had failed her somehow, but she doesn't look at it like that, because she called me a little while later to update me on her physical ailments- she just found out she has type 2 diabetes. MJ has been so generous to my kids and I hope we will still be able to be friends at some level- even if it's just by praying for each other or running into each other.