Not Getting Anywhere

Last year, my parents said that they sent a package to me and that I should keep my eyes alert.
The package didn't get anywhere, and I am still waiting.

Upon further examination, my father explained that he had not listed the country properly, and instead set up the address American style, so that the zip code would be read as a US zip code. I don't know why. I've lived abroad for almost 20 years and all of his packages had arrived before.

Following this, my parents finally told me about the blackouts that my father had experienced. He couldn't remember anything and was asking about several of his cousins, and how they were doing. My mother had to explain to him that those cousins had died a few years ago.

My mother said that she was making an appointment to see their doctor. I had a encouraged them to consider trying to living near me over the years. Their answer always was, "No we have our doctor that knows us."

"Did you make the appointment with your doctor?" I asked my mother.
"No, not yet. But I will soon," she explained, "The problem is that our doctor is retiring. We will need to find a new a doctor, and just start all over."

One thing I can say about my parents is that they are not very forward about information. For example, they never told me directly that my sister had another baby (or that she got married), even though they had personally visited my sister and seen the baby.

"So how will you get to see the doctor?" I asked.
"Well I don't want your father to drive in his condition, and I stopped driving a few years ago. So we will take a bus or a cab," my mother continued. They don't have any other family in town. Few friends.

I've always known that they would get old, and dreaded thinking about how to work it out logistically, living abroad and helping them to sort things out. I only with they would be more cooperative, especially on the telephone.