Daniel Troppy

"She serves delicious meals" Short story #592 Before Adela started caring for my parents, I would prepare multiple meals before returning to Atlanta. A day before I left, I cooked a pot roast, chicken enchiladas, and a pasta casserole dish. I wan...

“She serves delicious meals”
Short story #592

Visit my website to read the rest of my collection of short:
www.DanielTroppy.com

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"Thick to thin" Short story #591 Looking at photographs of Mom when she was young and single, to when she had her two boys, you see she once had a full head of hair. Thick, luscious, jet-black wavy hair, so thick you could hardly run...

“Thick to thin”
Short story #591

Visit my website to read the rest of my collection of short stories:
www.DanielTroppy.com

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"Card sending" Short story #590 Lisa was a close friend of my late brother Darrell. When he passed away, she emailed me photographs I had never seen before. She would hang out at his studio, and the two would get into all sorts of m...

“Card sending”
Short story #590

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www.DanielTroppy.com

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"Mom loves her makeup" Short story #589 One morning, Mom’s primary nurse, Janie, stopped by to check Mom’s vital signs. Janie walked up their driveway carrying two bags: one for Dad and me, and the other for Mom. Dad’s and my bag were loade...

“Mom loves her makeup”
Short story #589

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www.DanielTroppy.com

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"I wish I heard from my sisters" Short story #588 One afternoon, I was sitting across from Mom when she said, “I wish I heard from my sisters.” Then she said, “I don’t think I have their addresses to write them and check on them.” I calmly and gently reminded Mom that s...

“I wish I heard from my sisters”
Short story #588

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www:DanielTroppy.com

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"Sweet belly" Short story #587 Throughout my parents’ 66-year marriage, they have always had nicknames for each other. Mom calls Dad Mr. Drysdale, Pistol Pete, Tooter (yes, Dad is windy). Dad calls Mom Maria, Poncho, Lupita, and no...

“Sweet belly”
Short story #587

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Early morning call" Short story #586 One early morning, I was awakened by “Honey, Daniel, Honey…..”. I ran to my parents’ bedroom to find Mom trying to get herself out of bed, but couldn’t. Her nightgown was 90% covered in urine, which m...

“Early morning call”
Short story #586

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"No fretting" Short story #585 I texted Hollis and asked her to list me for a Delta standby flight to McAllen, TX. This parent check-up visit was a far cry from the previous trip. The previous trip, I thought, was going to be the l...

“No fretting”
Short story #585

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"An empty refrigerator" Short story #584 Three weeks after I left my parents a fully stocked refrigerator, I returned to find it nearly empty. I love a well-stocked refrigerator because I enjoy cooking; my dad, on the other hand, sings a dif...

“An empty refrigerator”
Short story #584

Visit my website to read the rest of my short stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Trust issues" Short story #583 When I was much younger, I was very naive; today, not so much. As I’ve aged, I’ve become more skeptical, more leery - yes, I have trust issues; there, I said it. Slowly, that naive self has withered a...

“Truist issues”
Short story #583

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
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"She's a talker" Short story #582 My grandmother, Troppy had a wonderful sense of humor, and because of that, she had a lot of friends. One close friend of hers was Clara, who also had a good sense of humor and was a talker. Clara’s h...

“She’s a talker”
Short story #582

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
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"Full house" Short story #581 Ever since Mom went into hospice care, their house has needed a revolving front door. Normally, they would have a visitor a day; now it’s a nurse, provider, and volunteer every day. To get all the car...

“Full house”
Short story #581

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
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"Always something new" Short story #580 After our Father’s Day barbecue lunch with our close family friend Cyndee, I drove Mom and Dad back home. Mom was on her walker, heading to her recliner, when she suddenly had trouble moving her left ...

“Always something new”
Short story #580

Visit my website to read the rest of the stories:
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"Feast fit for a queen" Short story #579 One day, I received a call from Chaplain Mr. Flores, asking if we would be around for lunch in two days. I let him know that Mom, Dad, and I would be at the house when he wanted to come. He told me he...

“Feast fit for a queen”
Short story #579

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Sweaters in the Summer" Short story #578 When Mom suffered a TIA, or “mini stroke,” I didn’t have the luxury of time when it came to packing my suitcase. When I got my bearings after being with my parents for almost two weeks, I noticed what...

“Sweaters in the Summer”
Short story #578

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"19" Short story #577 Before 8 am on a Saturday morning, Mom’s provider Rozvelina arrives to bathe her. She warmly greets mom with a big hug and an even bigger smile. I am aware that the hospice agency she works for schedu...

“19”
Short story #577

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
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"Father's Day" Short story #576 I had to immediately fly back to South Texas when Mom suffered a TIA, or “mini stroke,” in June. Since I was there, I just extended my trip so that I could be there for Father’s Day. I picked up a car...

“Father’s Day”
Short story #576

Visit my website to read the rest of the stories:
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"2 dozen tamales" Short story #575 Just before I started making dinner for Mom and Dad, my cellphone rang. It was my parents’ longtime friend and neighbor, Marina. She was with her daughter, Diana, driving back to her house with a gift...

“2 dozen tamales”
Short story #575

Visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Restlessness & aging" Short story #574 I remember when I was in the sixth grade; my teacher had gone to Kenya for her summer break. She told the class all about it, detail by detail, and I was with my elbows on the desk, hands under my chi...

“Restlessness @ aging”
Short story#574

Visit my website to read the rest of the stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Independent spirit" Short story #573 Doesn’t the title of this short story sound like a racehorse name? One day, my friend Liz called to discuss adding some tabs to the website she is creating for my short stories. After we talked about ...

“Independent spirit”
Short story #573

Visit my website to read the rest of the stories:

www.danieltroppy.com

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"Uncaged" Short story #572 My bookie, Susan, texted me with the list of horses for the Belmont Stakes. I scrolled through the list of names; there were only eight to pick from. Immediately, my eyes landed on Uncaged with odds o...

“Uncaged”
Short story #572

Please visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Wigs" Short story #571 My oldest college friend, Jerry, adores my mom. We have known each other for over forty-three years. He lives in New York City and every few days finds the time to call mom to check on her. She calls ...

“Wigs”
Short story #571

Please visit my website to read the rest of my stories:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Cat eyes" Short story #569 Mass at St. Anthony starts at 5 p.m. every Saturday, so Dad starts getting ready around 3 p.m. One Saturday afternoon, before Mass, I saw Dad frantically searching for something as he checked each roo...

“Cat eyes”
Short story #569

Please visit my website for the rest of the story:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"The act of caregiving" Short story #568 In April 2022, my mom fell and broke her hip; that was the first time I fully became aware of caregiving. It was when I first-hand witnessed others rushing to a complete stranger’s aid. Fast forward t...

“The act of caregiving”
Short story #568

Visit my website for the rest of these #shortstories :
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#literaryagent #writer #caregiver #nonfiction

"Four days later" Short story #567 It was a Friday afternoon, just four days after Mom was unresponsive for an hour and scared Dad, and she wanted to go for a ride. She looked at me and said, “Can you please take me for a ride, anywher...

“Four days later”
Short story #567
Visit my website to read the other 566 #shortstories :
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"No one knows" Short story #566 Mom’s hospice nurse, Janie, sees more into the future than Dad or I do. One late morning, after she checked Mom’s vitals, she sat down with us to enjoy a home-cooked meal. When I walked her out to her...

“No one knows”
Short story #566
Visit my website for the rest of my #shortstories at:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"It's time to adjust" Short story #565 As you can imagine, after someone has suffered a “mini-stroke,” adjustments are next in line. Mom’s hospice nurse, Janie, changed some medication, recommended a dietary shift, and ordered a wheelchair...

“It’s time to adjust”
Short story #565

For the other 564 short stories, please visit my website:
www.danieltroppy.com

danieltroppy.com/short-storie...

"The day after" Short story #564 The day after Mom suffered a TIA, often called a mini-stroke, her hospice team members showed up. Tuesday morning was a busy day at my parents' house. Adela, who helps my parents and is an important a...

“The day after”
Short story #564

danieltroppy.com/short-storie...

"Unforgettable" part IV Short story #563 I had no clue what was ahead of me as Hollis and I headed towards my departure gate. Hollis kept reminding me to make as many memories with my parents as I could. I hugged Hollis goodbye as I prepared...

“Unforgettable” part IV
Short story #563

Read the other #shortstories on my website:
www.danieltroppy.com

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"Unforgettable" part III Short story #562 I literally had 10 minutes to brush my teeth and throw some clothes into my luggage before Hollis drove up the driveway. I hugged Hollis so tight and thanked her profusely for everything when she arri...

“Unforgettable” part III
Short story #562

For the other 561 #shortstories visit my website:
www.danieltroppy.com

danieltroppy.com/short-storie...