It’s the fifth Tuesday of the month! This is our chance to work with a specific syllabic poetry form. Take this opportunity to learn more about the particular form.
This week’s form is:
Haibun
As an added bit to the challenge… please use Frank J. Tassone’s photo as the inspiration for your Haibun. Frank says this spot is called Getrude’s Nose, a Rocky promenade located in Minnewaska Preserve State Park, in the Shawangunk Mountains outside New Paltz, New York (about a 2 hour drive out of NYC). Please include the copyright to the photo in your post.
I decided to take on Colleen’s challenge and write about part of my recent time in hospital.
I lie on my side, voices above my head are panicked. Another voice arrives, a quick discussion ensues. Angiogram is mentioned, I am moved. It’s all panic and pain. My head searches for escape, trees, rock, warmth and peace. The voices decide what they are doing. A voice barks orders at me, the pain increases…..
It is Sunday again and I do love a music prompt, not too much work involved, which is good for me as I still don’t feel like too much heavy lifting heavy blogging yet so I could not resist Jim Adams and his Song Lyric Sunday Challenge.
This week the prompt words are Cold/Freeze/Heat/Melt
On the hot side I immediately thought of Midnight Oil and one of best protest songs ( in my opinion) Beds are Burning . A protest song about how The Aborigines are treated. A fact how all Original races have been treated by invaders over time and even now all over the world.
After Midnight Oil toured through the Outback in 1986, playing to remote Aboriginal communities and seeing first hand the seriousness of the issues in health and living standards, Peter Garrett wrote “Beds Are Burning” to criticize how said populations were often forcibly removed from their lands, highlighted by the pre-chorus lines “it belongs to them, let’s give it back”. Considering such a local affair inspired a worldwide hit, Garrett commented “Who would have thought an Aboriginal land rights song would travel that far?”[4] There are specific references to certain Australian places and politics, such as Kintore Ranges and the town of Yuendumu, vehicles produced by the Holden company, the “It’s Time” slogan and the notion of “fair go“.[5]
And on the cold spectrum why not Annie Lennox and Cold. One of her most beautiful songs this one is very special to me. Not sure why because it is obviously all about a toxic relationship. It just goes to show you don’t pick your favourite songs they pick you.
“Cold” is a song by the British singer Annie Lennox. It was released as the fourth single from her 1992 album, Diva, and reached no. 26 in the UK. The single was released as a series of three separate CD singles, titled Cold, Colder and Coldest. Each CD featured the track “Cold” as well as a collection of live tracks. It was the first single to chart in the UK Top 40 without being released on vinyl, solely on CD.
That’s all for now Folks I am worn-out (Darn light weight)
Hello now why did I pick that song by James Blunt. Well it’s for the lines
“I put a smile on my face To hide that I feel outta place Should I give it all up? I’m on the edge and letting go After the highs you feel the lows Should I give it all up?”
And
“Could you hold my hand? ‘Cause it’s getting dark And I’m losing grip On my heart Could you lift me up ‘Cause I’m breaking down And I need you here With me now”
Yes I am feeling insecure, it’s the cholecystectomy bag, or is it the tube coming out of me. I don’t know really. I just don’t feel like me. Anyhow since I last wrote a post on the 16th June. I have been resting and recovering. I lost blood the first week and had to visit the hospital twice, the last time was Saturday 20th anyway things have settled since then. 🤞. My next appointment is this Monday, for a “drain check”.
So it’s been difficult to sleep, hubby being absolutely great doing most things and helping me. We are both still getting up at stupid o’clock. After four days I felt strong enough to get washed dressed and sit in the garden. I have progressed to folding laundry, and I am walking round the garden, getting stronger. I have had a sort of shower and washed my hair… Both endeavours, though on different days wore me out.😴
This is my view as I sit in the shade and read all your lovely posts. So there really is not much to tell because I really am not doing much. It has been great to read all your posts and news. I am waiting for my muse to return, she has cleared off and left me high and dry!
Then I got a lovely surprise, this afternoon WordPress sent me this lovely Surprise..
So Happy Anniversary to me 💜
So I amazed to see I have been blogging for 9 years. It been and gone in a flash!
So that’s it for now I need to conserve energy, for getting better and also for keeping a smile on my face and supporting hubby, who is “Chief cook and bottle washer” , dog walker on one hand and exectuter to his mum’s will on the other.He is working so hard so I want to support him all I can. I don’t want him worrying about me too much he has a lot to cope with right now. So I need to support him too.
That’s all for now Folks, and Thank You WordPress.
Dear friends, and you are all friends, you have proved this more than once. I feel I should explain my absence since 4th June. I have been unable to write or even read any one’s posts, my apologies. Then this morning I spotted how Darswood had said she had wondered where I was and had sent condolences for the family that I should give you a heads up for now.
Firstly, MIL died late night 3rd/ early hours 4th June. The Covid and frailty won in the end. MIL did not go quietly she fought it to the end with every ounce she had. She made her goal, her 100th Birthday and was conscious, up and dressed to celebrate it with the hospital staff and hubby.
Then the days began to blur we fell into a pit of organisation. As you will know if you have been following my #WDIIA posts hubby and his brother and sister do not get on too well. But when MIL died they agreed hubby should organise everything, this is just as well as otherwise it would of been chaos. So he threw himself into arranging the funeral. I gave all the support I could but he was a man on a mission, he wanted to do his mum proud.
We got up at stupid o’clock, we walked Ruby , Hubby arranged the funeral this strange pandemic life continued with its highs and lows.
Stangely I was feeling ill, sleeping, eating and doing even less. I found it hard to write or read. Pains in my shoulders, back, chest, neck, jaw all escalated until we thought heart attack? … But for days? Eventually I rang our GP surgery.
Now going to the GP surgery these days is not normal. You ring up and talk to a non medical receptionist who quizzes you, luckily I was deemed unwell enough to see a duty Dr at 5pm that evening. Instructions : Arrive at carpark wearing a mask and gloves, stand at the first yellow line by the emergency exit and someone will let you in. I was greeted by an woman in brown scrubs, plastic apron, gloves, mask, goggles and a visor. She was actually the Dr. Her PPE and my mask made conversation rather difficult, anyway I had a chat with her then a nurse gave me an ECG. And an appointment for blood test was arranged. ECG was fine.
I am not well
It was a very painful weekend though Saturday we got to see our son , his wife and the grandchildren, under brand new rules we are now allowed to have a BBQ of six people who must socially distancing. You may not go into the host’s house at all. So we had a lovely bbq.. and it was cold and windy and some of the time it rained thank goodness for heavy garden umbrellas. But it was the first chance to see them since lockdown and it was lovely. Some of the above rules have changed again.
As the weekend progressed I got worse. Monday was terrific, pain, Monday night thought I was dying, Tuesday I took to my bed. By 4pm we had to call 101, they sent an Ambulance which took me to E.D. Home at 5am next morning then back at AEC at 11am tests all day, then Ultrasound found the problem. A massively swollen gall bladder full of bile and large stones, one huge one blocking the neck. I was admitted.
Now again because of the pandemic we have to go to hospital unaccompanied, so hubby had spent Monday night and Tuesday not really knowing how I was really coping. Luckily we were in touch by mobile.
Wednesday after nil by mouth I.V. antibiotics, fluids and painkillers overnight on the ward it was decided they would put in a drain and fit a cholecystectomy bag. Mid morning I was taken to ultrasound, the procedure did not go smoothly and it had to be done twice with a CT Angiogram done half way through to see what was going wrong. I might talk about that later but not today, the drain and bag are with me now for 6 to 8 weeks with appointments arranged with the surgeon and then another operation to remove the gall bladder.
Hospitals too at the moment are dark and scary places , staff wearing PPE, and inpatients and outpatients wearing masks and gloves. I will write about about my experiences, fears, what I heard and saw but not now I am tired and I don’t have the muse with me she is on holiday.
I was discharged from hospital Saturday evening, wearing my new accessary the cholecystectomy bag, with scant instructions on how to empty and keep it clean and even less on what I can and can’t do myself, but there’s always Google and my brain to help me with that . So Sunday dawned warm and it was so good to feel safe at home, hubby and I emptied the cholecystectomy bag , over 200mls good I thought it’s draining well , We had a very quiet day and it was good to relax and eat something edible though small. A neighbour rang and whilst they were chatting I was dozing. Hubby looked at my bag and there was another 150 mils in it. He said our neighbour had said it should not be red and looking like tomato sauce and over 300mls was an awful lot to loose since coming home. Thankfully we listened as we knew she was a nurse albeit 34yrs ago.
So it was Sunday evening I was back in hospital much to my distress, thank goodness after 24hrs, more tests, bloods and two nasty injections through a cannular I am back home , grateful and determined to stay here.
Last night I slept like a baby, we were up at a quarter to stupid o’clock. But today is MIL’s funeral and sadly I can’t go, I am not well enough. That again is another post. .
So I am going to stop now as I am exhausted, I have been trying to finish this post on and off for over 12 hours now but I am determined to do so.
The funeral went well, and MIL’s road was lined with her neighbours, family and friends. A mark of the woman she was. Our middle son followed the hearse to the Crematorium as a mark of respect, a one man Cortege. He payed his respects to the 10 family members allowed into the funeral then drove to our house to look after me. In the garden socially distancing.
Hubby and our two other sons attended the funeral, hubby read his lovely eulogy to his mum, the Celebrant spoke beautifully about MIL from what hubby had told her. Hubby and our to other lads joined The middle lad and me in the garden, we made a party of six with Ruby dog, and we were all socially distanced. The boys drifted off one by one the youngest first home to his family, then the middle to his flat our eldest and hubby took Ruby for a walk . Then he went off home too.
Below the music from the funeral.
Mil entered to this as it was a favourite of hers.
This hymn was for all to join in, with was this version.
Unforgettable, bless she is. Was her exit anthem.
So I think that is that for now, I still don’t feel up to being back full time yet. The loss, the cholecystectomy bag, the next op, the fear and pain, pandemic is all a little to much just now. I am here I am trying and it’s so good to know you are all there.
Thank you to Sue at Daily Echo and Ritu at But I Smile Anyway for seeing me through a dark night on the ward. Thank you Marjorie Mallon for her kind words and Darswood for giving me the shove I needed to write this post. To all of you , you know who you are Betty, Geoff, Di, Hugh, Colleen, Dale, Ronovanwrite’s, Kat, John, Jim all of you out there, I am here. I am coming back I just need some time. If your name’s not there consider yourselves all mentioned.
Here is a case of Racism that took years to be addressed. Stephen murdered in 1993. Nothing seemed to have change from the 60s to then, and nothing seems to have changed from then to now. I abhor racism of any kind.
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