Fiona Called

I have not heard from Rob's sister Fiona in ages. At least not by phone. I have had a couple of notes or pictures in response to my weekly cards or brief letters. But she called today. I think it is likely significant that it was Mothers Day weekend that she made the call. We didn't talk about Mothers Day, but it sort of hung there a bit between us. She sounded heavily medicated and said she had been having trouble with peers and they were thinking of moving her to a place with more freedom. Yup like that is a plan. The poor girl decompensates in such a major way every time that they do this. I know a big part of why they keep trying is financial and it makes me cuckoo. But despite the difficulty understanding her (which I kept blaming on a bad phone connection) it was a good call. She didn't want to talk to the kids, just me. She also wanted a gift card to WalMart for summer clothes. I know she gets a clothing allowance but I also know that she knows that this is something parents do. Thus I think the connection between Mothers Day weekend and her call. I told her I would send out a gift card. I'm sure it won't be the hundreds of dollars she may be dreaming that it is, but it will show her in a way she equates, that I do what "mothers" do. They provide, they keep safe. They love. They keep writing banal letters because they are desparately afraid of losing the thread of connection. I am so glad she called.