Saturday 22 June 2013

Life gets serious, don't it?

It wasn't my intention to leave such a long gap between posts.

Life has a habit of getting in the way of our good intentions. Life, in the form of chronic illness, hospital admissions, and a death in the extended family, has played havoc with my intention to write a post every fortnight. 

The hospital admission was mine. I was rushed to the ER by ambulance with a suspected bleed in the brain (in other words a stroke); a frightening experience, more so for my children than for me. However, after what seemed like thousands of medical tests included a lot of bloodletting and big pieces of machinery run by sophisticated technology, it was decided my problems were caused by a viral infection of the brain. Whew! What a relief. 

I'm still fighting the virus. It's a very possessive one; it wants all my attention and because it affects my brain it has that attention in spades. It fights with the chronic illnesses causing them to have temper tantrums that are as disruptive and painful as any 3 year old meltdown. I sleep a lot. When awake I drink at least 4 litres of water a day to prevent a return of dehydration. (The toilet and I are now in a very close relationship. Thank god for the proximity of the bathroom to my bedroom!) 

Still my medical issues are minor compared to my daughter-in-laws recent news. Her sister died of an aneurysm in the brain and she was only 43 years old with a 13 year old son. It has devastated her family. I've spent long hours with my 3 year old grandson to take the pressure off my DinL so she can get on with the business of grieving. It is so sad. Her sister died so suddenly that everyone has been bowled over by her death. My DinL is a wonderful, intelligent and wise woman who is a fabulous mum to my grandson and great life partner to my son. All I can do is hug her when she cries, listen when she wants to talk about her beloved sister and keep my GS as occupied as possible. It seems so little in the face of such a catastrophe but my sweet DinL says it's enough.


I'm very lucky to live in a country with excellent, universal health care and where there are support systems in place for the bereaved, all at no cost to me and low cost to my DinL and son. I am so grateful for my family who love and support each other and are there for each other in times of need. Most of all, I'm very grateful to be alive. Every day is a bonus to be lived to the fullest with a grateful heart.