Priorities

So my mom's at the hospital. I was supposed to keep her company because my sisters were about to go home before midnight. One has to go to school at 7 AM tomorrow, the other has to go to work at 6 AM. My dad was still at a meeting. I was about to leave the house when my grandmother told me she was finding it hard to breath. When her condition stabilized, she told me not to leave because her condition might worsen again. My sisters live with my parents, while me and my brother live at our grandparent's house. So if I left, only my grandfather and our helper would be left with my grandmother, neither of whom are able to drive a car, in case she needs to be brought to the hospital--- again. And yet, my mother was alone at the hospital, because my sisters already left. They thought I was already on my way because I told them I was about to leave. Someone needs to be with my mom, to attend to some of her needs. I know for a fact that nurses aren't always readily available, especially when you're confined in a private room. And it's gets incredibly lonely being confined in a huge room all by yourself! Man, it was one of those instances that I wished I could be in two places at the same time.

Oh yeah! There's one person who's still not in the picture, right? Where was my brother??? Truth is, I have no idea. I sent him a text messages regarding the situation, and I tried calling him but he did not even reply. He didn't go home for the weekend... heck, he hasn't been home for the past few weekends. During weekdays he's at work in the province, so that's understandable. Usually he's home during weekends. But since the start of the new year, he's been going around the country with his new girlfriend and a few friends, not for business, but for plain leisure.... because he's so stressed out from work, that he needs to take a break and have fun every weekend--- that's what he says. When my grandmother was confined at the ICU for almost a month last January, he only visited on Friday nights, and he only stays for less than an hour before he goes to another one of his mini vacations. He brings a lot of stuff during his visits, as if material things would suffice or even compensate. I heard from him yesterday, asking for medications and first aid treatment. Apparently he got into a minor skateboarding accident. I wondered why the heck was he skateboarding when our mother's at the hospital. Even my dad's upset, and this is one of the few situations when I understand where he's coming from. This time, I agree with him. But hey, my brother is living his own life. The choices he makes are his, no one but himself can decide which actions he should take. He's old enough to determine which are right and wrong, even when his perceptions seem distorted to others. We all have different quirks, some of which others may find hard to understand. If he thinks that skateboarding with his friends while our mom's at the hospital is perfectly okay, then that's his prerogative. It's his life. It's his world.

Talk about your fucked up priorities.