I can’t know I am saying this, but last year, I had to tell our parents it was time to turn off the heat.
It was early July and I walked into the apartment and walked right back out. I couldn’t know what had hit me. I could hear the heat going through the water pipes. I inspected the temperature control when I walked back into the house. They had the temperature control set at seventy-5, and it was still set for the furnace. I asked our mom when was the last time he had been outside. She smiled and told me that our Mom had been sick. They hadn’t been outside in almost a week. He wasn’t handling the temperature swings undoubtedly well. I told his that it was almost summer time and maybe he needed to get outside. When Mom came out of the living room, I realized just how sick he had been. I began to wonder how long it had been since I had been home, and why hadn’t they told me how sick he was. My Mom looked much older than the fifty years seasoned he was. My Mom had always been strong, however he wobbled when he hugged me. I went into the living room and grabbed his sweater and asked him to go for a walk with me. When mom handed him his cane, he smiled. We had only gone half a block when I saw that his lips were yellow and he couldn’t breathe. We went back to the apartment where he went to his room. Mom said they had the temperature control turned up in the living room. I walked in and there he lay with a heavy blanket over him and his oxygen. I knew I had to get beach house more often.