As the week drew to a close, Memorial Day became a point of focus for the Alder family. They were originally slated to take part in a barbeque at Drew’s parents’ home, but when his father twisted his ankle, there was concern that they might have to reschedule. Grandpa Glen healed in time, but a new complication presented itself. Jessica had called her parents to say that she and her fiancé would likely make an appearance. She also happened to mention that she was pregnant.
The news was devastating to Nancy. For one thing, it meant that Jessica was now almost certain to marry Ricard Landreau (born Richard Landry, but he quickly decided that name didn’t suit him). A more pompous man than he she and Drew hoped they would never meet. Jessica’s pregnancy also meant that Nancy would be a grandma. She wasn’t quite even fifty yet and was by no means ready for it. Finally, there was the possibility that due to the sour relationship between, Jessica would not allow her child the privilege of knowing her own grandmother.
“Wow, Mom is really upset,” Carrie remarked on evening after watching her mother cry.
“Maybe we won’t have to go to grandma and grandpas,” Stephen lamented with restrained hopefulness.
“Dad already said we’re going, and that’s that. Besides…I don’t think Mom wants anyone to think there was anything wrong. What do you think, Meg?”
Megan didn’t know what to think. She felt terrible. Her mother had been so helpful, and yet she could do nothing to console her. She couldn’t. After all, she hadn’t the slightest clue what she was feeling. It was as if Nancy had lost a child (which, in many ways, she had). All Megan could hope to do was remind her that she still mattered to the children she had left.
The night before the proposed gathering, Megan got an idea. She was lying in bed with just her diaper on, her knees drawn towards her chest in a nearly fetal position clutching a pillow when it came to her. The idea was childish and convoluted, the kind of last-ditch effort that was the bread-and-butter solution for the feeble-minded and the desperate. And while her own inner Simon told her time and time again that it was stupid, a more optimistic calling beckoned her to at least explore the possibility.
Megan’s plan called for her to wear a diaper to the gathering and, if need be, use it. The idea was to draw enough attention to her to defuse the potentially disastrous confrontation between Mom and Jess. She would act the part of a needy little kid (more or less) and remind her mom how much she loved her and how she missed being cared for by her. She would also use the opportunity as a to see if that was what she really wanted. If it wasn’t, well, hey…things in her life had been crazy lately, she had an excuse for her behavior. And she would have all summer long to live down the mortification that was destined to fall upon her.
Come Memorial Day, Megan rose, showered and changed as usual. She found herself wrapped in a bathrobe staring at the clean diaper that lay on the center of her bed. It was time to make her choice.
AShe decided to go for it. Her mother needed her help and she felt she simply had to give it a try. Besides, what did she have to lose?
BShe shook her head and stashed the diaper away. Bad idea, bad timing. Sure, she wanted to help her mother…. but not like this. There was bound to be another way.

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