Doctor appointment day dawned, bright and clear. Sis and I got Mom ready and loaded her into the car with her wheelchair.

Mom has “White Coat Syndrome” where her blood pressure goes up when she sees a doctor, but this time, Mom was flat out cheerful.

We pushed her down the hallway and registered Mom at the check-in desk.

Mom lifted her face up to me, “Honey, do they have a water fountain here?”

My sis and I scanned the waiting room. “I don’t see one. I’ll ask the receptionist.”

There wasn’t a water cooler or fountain, so the receptionist retrieved an icy water bottle from a door behind her counter. “Here you are.” She handed the frosty bottle to Mom with a smile.

Mom grinned back, “Thank you, so much. It will be nice to not have my lips stuck together. Unless I want to kiss someone.”

The receptionist raised her eyebrows and flushed. She blinked a few times and looked at me and my sis, “Uh, okay.”

I whispered to my sis, “Mom looks like a movie star and sounds like a lady of the evening.”

#caregiving #Healthcare