The Business Side

Post 221

I believe I have mentioned a time or two that a very painful part of losing a loved one is dealing with the business-y things.  Unless you go through it, you don’t realize how much taking care of this stuff just plain hurts.  It starts from the beginning and continues on, occasionally popping into your life.  No amount of “knowing she’s in a better place” takes away the knowledge that these things represent her life HERE and that she is missed so so much.  

Last week we received yet another notification from a doctor’s office in Birmingham, that they “noticed” she still owed them $25 - the charge was for a missed appointment sometime in January.  It probably wasn’t until March that I made the call to the billing department to let them know it wouldn’t be paid and why not.  I remember choking back tears as I spoke.  

Then a couple months later, we received the same bill.  Two months made no difference to the amount of pain I felt having to tell them again over the phone.  

Last week we received, not really a bill, but a notification.  I was very angry when I saw it and I may have even cussed with “WTF?”  That’s not something I typically do, but to go through the pain of calling twice and having it make no difference is just a punch in the heart.  This time I decided to write a letter to ATTN: Dr. Favor, at her place of business, letting her know nicely what I just described above, and perhaps they could use a little training in that department.  Hopefully she cares enough to follow through on that so other families don’t have to feel this unwanted, additional, and unnecessary pain.  It’s going in the mail tomorrow.

Those kinds of things put a damper on the day so that other things can also make me cry more easily. This afternoon on my way to an errand, an old song by Adele called “Someone Like You” (2011) came on and it wasn't the words, but a memory of being in the car with Morgan and after hearing the song a few times, I had told her it made me think of a girl who my son had broken up with that year, singing it about him. She cracked up about that I think.

That memory, and just so many memories of us listening to music - being in the car together. Errands, carpools, trips, her begging me to go with her to a Chinese buffet she loved called “Twin Dragon” and sitting with her while she ate. (I'd have already eaten obviously). Her favorite thing there? Bacon wrapped scallops and California rolls.

One day at a time…

I thank my God in every remembrance of you,

Philippians 1:3 AMP