Sunday dinner with my grandma

Note to non-Southern friends of LA: In the South, we call the noontime meal "dinner." The evening meal is "supper."

My grandma invited us all over for Sunday dinner after the Alzheimer's had begun to set in, but while she was still coherent enough to engage in social activities and conversation.

The serving style in our family is to lay out the dishes on a counter and serve ourselves buffet-style before sitting at the table. One of the dishes Grandma "fixed" was a casserole. It looked really good, so we all ladled some onto our plates. At the table, someone asked her what it was.

"I'm not really sure," she replied.

Two beats later, she asked, "Has anyone seen Bubba? I can't find that cat anywhere."