power cuts

I talked to my parents on Skype yesterday and was able to get a good 45-minute conversation in before the power was cut off in the whole neighborhood and our wireless connection lost. (Ok, so my last post bragged about how technologically advanced Vietnam was but I'll just take this time to mention that while there are plenty of accidental black outs here, there are fairly regular brown outs and a neighborhood will have planned power cuts) So, before the phone call was cut short I listened as my mother talked about this being her last semester to teach for the nursing school in our home town.

Although nurses are badly needed, there is a bit of a territorial struggle over which higher institution will be providing the training in the area. In the mean time, my mother "joins the ranks of the unemployed," as she put it, and the small Texas town goes without badly needed nurse positions and the proper training for people looking to fill those jobs.

Despite a possible grim approach to the whole thing, my mom is relieved to be able to spend the time with her mother who celebrated 94 years of life this month. For her birthday, I gave her a coffee mug with a map of the Hawaiian Islands on it and she responded by telling me I "was the best" through a mix of smiles and tears ( After hugs like that, she might just get one from every place I visit).

Plus, she had already given me weeks of entertainment by having my mom and me play 'Loteria' (aka 'Mexican Bingo') with her at her day care center. We witnesed her lucky streak as she won the big pot (of nickels) not once, but TWICE! The thrill was so great, we celebrated with milk and cookies delivered to us and all the other day care patrons by a smiling woman pushing a cart and delivering our treats with a white rubber glove on.

So, my mom is a few weeks away from unemployment and on a lucky day my Grandma wins $4.05 in change while being excited over a ceramic trinket from her granddaughter. Our height of a celebration is maxed out with a few cookies accompanied by milk in a paper cup.

What's the point? Sometimes those seemingly big power cuts help us see what else is really left on in our lives.