TAKING A DAY

There is always so much to do! Thank goodness I'm home today trying to catch up on the house neglect of the past two weeks. I think I could use a whole week to get it all done.

Life here has been dis-jointed this past few weeks. My sister's husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor in early August and regretfully told there was nothing anyone could do - it had gone too far before the warning signs had presented themselves. They told him that he had from two weeks to two months to live, and they were almost right on with the prediction. They spent the time wisely putting everything in Margaret's name and doing their best to prepare for the future. There were even three weeks in August, after the doctors managed to find the right mix of medication for pain, that were good to them. But then the inevitable happened and he started going downhill again with nothing to stop the disease's progress. Over the past three weeks since John was admitted into palliative care, we sisters have tried to be with Margaret as much as possible - all taking turns to spread out the visits as much as possible. I've driven to the other side of the province twice (1400 kms round trip) and we will be heading out there tomorrow morning EARLY to be in Coleville for a 3:00 o'clock funeral.

My sister Wendy left to be with Margaret immediately after the call that John was gone to be there to help her with the final preparations for the funeral, and we'll all spend the night after the funeral together for some family time. Margaret is so lucky to be living in Coleville. The people there have been beyond fantastic in their support - giving both financially and emotionally - throughout this terrible time. When I was up there for my first visit I mentioned this to one of Margaret's friends and she said that any small town would have done the same, and maybe they would, but I still say that the people of Coleville are special.

All my fall work around this place has been pretty much put on hold. My potatoes have not been dug, the lawn mowers are not put away (mostly because the big drive-in door to the Quonset was broken and wouldn't open) and the house looks like it was abandonned to a man for eight days, all tolled, over the past two weeks. Before I knew that we weren't leaving until tomorrow morning I had taken today off and was not even tempted to change it when the plans changed. So far I've done four loads of laundry, made a big pot of soup, sorted through the ripe tomatoes, cleaned out the porch and washed its floor, and plan to tackle the outside jobs right after I sign off here. The sun is shining, the temperature is balmy - for October - and I feel like I might even catch up someday.