Imagine driving through the mountains. There is nothing to do but to keep looking outside at the lack of real scenery except for a few places where you could see some landscapes.
There is no where to stop because the exits are few and far between. You are so bored.
It was at that moment you decided that you needed a way to entertain yourself.
Cell phones were a thing but nothing like they are today. Plus, cell towers would have been few and far between.
Reading would have been impossible because well car sickness. I’ve done that once while riding on the Blue Ridge Mountains. Lost all of my breakfast all over the backseat. Nasty business.
So, with a pen and some paper, the best moment in my mom’s life was the creation of her imaginary boyfriends. You list all of the states and create a boyfriend for each state.
Then you create a biography for a few of the boyfriends.
When you get to Ohio, you stop at a rest stop and lo and behold you see a man who matches the description of the boyfriend you created for Ohio.
This joke continues on for a while but later is not relevant. So, you quit talking about those boyfriends until your sister passes away.
When you write her letter, you mention the boyfriends. Once again, it is relevant.
So, I began to find you boyfriends all of the time. Every random guy, I would point at them and say, “There goes your boyfriend.”
I don’t know how many boyfriends she ended up by the time she died.
Her boyfriends were found around town and while I was on trips. Several times that I can remember finding her imaginary boyfriends were when my chosen sister, Molly, and I were briefly in Indiana. We went to the restroom at one of those truck rest stops, and this man walks out with cat litter. That’s the moment when Molly began looking for imaginary boyfriends for mom.
The other time was when Molly and I were caravanning from Niagara Falls, Ontario to Erie, Pennsylvania. We were on the New York Turnpike when this guy rode past me on a motorcycle. I thought to myself, “Well, there goes one of mom’s boyfriends.”
All of the sudden, my Bluetooth goes off. Incoming call from Molly the wonderful. I safely answered the phone. “Your mom’s boyfriend just drove by on the motorcycle.”
Molly was a true believer of my mom’s imaginary boyfriends.
I don’t really know how mom really felt about me making her all of those boyfriends. I think she either rolled her eyes or pretended not to hear me when I started to talk about them.
It’s a fun story that will not only be a legacy of hers, but of mine as well.
Now, that list still exists but I cannot find it. One day, I will and maybe I’ll share some of the names. Some we were creative with, while others were not very creative.
Oh well, it’s the thought that counts.
Stay kind!
Believe in the Magic Traci Diary 