My daughter-in-law laughed when she gave me a $2 scratch-off for my 73rd birthday. 10 months later, my own son shoved a senior living brochure in front of me and said, “We already picked your room.” They thought I was too old to fight back. They had no idea what I had been hiding.
My daughter-in-law gave me a two-dollar scratch-off ticket for my seventy-third birthday and laughed while I scratched it. Ten months later, my own son placed a glossy brochure in front of me for a senior living facility he and his wife had already chosen, as though my life were furniture they could remove once it became inconvenient.
The scratch-off was the only gift I received that birthday. The store price tag was still stuck to the back.
“Let’s see if you win enough for bus fare, Margaret,” Jessica joked.
My son Colin burst out laughing. My grandchildren joined in, mostly because their parents did.
We were in the kitchen of the house we shared in Austin, Texas. I had baked my own birthday cake. While Jessica cut a slice and complained that the vanilla frosting was too sweet, I scratched away the ticket’s silver coating.
Then I saw the symbols.
I checked once.
Then again.
My heart pounded.
Nobody noticed. Colin poured wine. Jessica kept criticizing the cake. The kids stayed glued to their tablets.
I carefully folded the ticket and slipped it into my beige cardigan pocket.
“Nothing?” Colin asked.
I smiled.
“Not even for bus fare.”
Jessica laughed again.
I thanked her for the birthday card and began clearing the dishes.
