Calamity and Calm

A week of hospitals, nursing, nurturing and finally peace…

The colours of a Friday evening stroll along the beach are pink…and we check ourselves into a happy place.

The week has been full of hospital visits with Dad coming home on Wednesday to recover. While the travelling and interrupted work days came to an end, I was then on call 24/7 for a couple of days getting him back to some sense of normality. Yesterday, after pumping electrolytes, vege soup, porridge (and other bland foods) into him he turned the corner and we have averted a return to the hospital we hope.

Meanwhile on the building site, Dan has had his back against the wall meeting deadlines and council inspections. My floors were finished and the next step in the project on hold while nursing duties took over.

I managed to get the brother to commit to a Friday night and Saturday with Dad so I can have a big site clean up in readiness for the kitchen in a couple of weeks.

So here I am! Ready to get the Sadie hat on and clean and clear…but I was given the biggest surprise last night when I arrived! Dan had spent his first day off in two weeks hanging all the doors, putting on door handles and skirting boards all around the new wooden floors in readiness for my painter to come back and do the final touch ups! I almost cried when I saw that he had fitted everything back in place to surprise me. Kindness in a world of turmoil.

We shared a quiet dinner and took a stroll along the beach appreciating the great things in our lives, moments of peace and calm.

The days of 2020 tick over and the sun sets on another day and rises in the morning, I drink my first coffee, load up the vacuum cleaner, mop and rags and head to the building site to start my day.

What are you doing for Christmas? They ask. In my world we can’t look that far ahead, it sure is one day at a time and the best laid plans will change. Rolling with the punches, the ups and downs, and living in the moment is the only way to hold onto our sanity. Beach yoga starts today, but yoga comes in all forms, and cleaning and clearing will activate muscles that have been sitting in front of a computer all week I’m sure!