DOGS

Chapter 6

When she was little, Kenya spent many of her weekends over her grandparents house, helping her grandmother take care of her garden in the backyard. Her grandmother's garden was her pride and joy, she treated it very gently and was convinced that the amount of love she gave it resulted in the growth of her beautiful flowers every spring through summer. She had all kinds of flowers, roses, daffodils, tulips, asters, peonies. You name it, she had it. Kenya's personal favorite were the sunflowers that grew in a huge group near the porch. She loved the bright yellow petals and how big they could grow. Her grandmother would allow her to take two sunflowers home each year they bloomed and she would put them in her blue glass vase by her window, being sure to take good care of them until they eventually died.

Gardening with her grandmother was one of her favorite hobbies, something she looked forward to each spring. Her grandmother worked in a flower shop and often used flowers from her own garden to make bouquets to sell to customers. When an upperclassmen asked Kenya to prom during her freshmen year and she accepted, her grandmother custom made her corsage out of pink and white orchids. Captivated by it's beauty, she tried to preserve it for as long as she could by putting it in the fridge. Eventually it began to turn brown and dry out, but she would never forget it's beauty.

When her grandfather Cliff died, her grandmother became less and less involved with gardening. She retired from her job but continued to make custom bouquets with flowers from her garden. After a few years, her passion for gardening completely disappeared and she stopped caring for her flower garden in the back. Kenya tried to take her grandmother's place and keep the garden in good shape, but soon she too lost interest in the garden without her grandmother by her side digging in the dirt and watering the flowers. The garden eventually shriveled up and died, no longer full of vibrant colors and earthy smells.

After being diagnosed with Alzhiemers and falling and breaking a hip, her grandmother was deemed unfit to live alone. So Kenya's parents made the decision to move her into a nursing home so that she's under careful watch of professional care givers. It's a nice little building that reminds Kenya of a small apartment rather than a nursing home. It has a picnic area out front for families to sit together, and a garden with a fountain in the back where they sometimes take their grandmother for a walk. Kenya wonder if the garden reminds her grandmother of the times they used to garden together, but she's always afraid of the answer if she asks.

Kenya walks down the hallway to her grandmother's room with her parents by her side and Simone and Auntie Robyn behind them. In her hands, she holds two sunflowers that she picked up from a flower shop on their way to the nursing home as a little touch of home to brighten her grandmother's room.

They walk inside to see her grandmother's nuse, Karen, opening the blinds to let in the sunlight. Karen is a big woman with an even bigger heart. She looks out for her grandmother like she's part of the family and always keeps them up to date on her condition. She knows her grandmother just as well as Kenya does, and for that, they greatly appreciate her. Karen smiles and looks at her grandmother who's sitting up in bed with an AARP magazine in her lap. "Ruth, look who came to visit."

Grandma Ruth closes her magazine and spreads her arms wide. "My daughter and Kenya! They even brought along my handsom son in law," She exclaims, then her eyes shift to the two people standing behind them, "Who's that?"

Auntie Robyn and Simone step closer to the bed so she can see them, "It's me ma, it's Robyn."

Grandma Ruth stares at her for moment and tilts her head to the side. Kenya's stomach clenches at the thought that her grandmother might have forgotten her own daughter. After a moment, her grandmother runs her fingers through her thinning grey hair, letting out a gasp. "Robyn, it's really you." Her voice shakes as her eyes glaze over.