Where to begin...

Forgive me dear reader, it's been a fortnight since my last posting. And at the risk of sounding trite, that fortnight has been a bit of a roller coaster ride.
I could go back and fill in the last two weeks, and tell you all about the shiny solar panels, and the gloriously enormously echoey conservatory of which we are the proud and somewhat stunned custodians... but I don't have the heart. Perhaps I will say more about them later, but right now I can't quite muster the literary loquacity that I'd need to do them justice...

A good friend of ours, Kath, has been walking through the dark scary forest for something like three years now. Same age as me, married to one of M's mates from way back when. She and her husband have dealt with many horrible things that life has thrown at them, one of these days when things are a bit less raw I will maybe talk about it. I have often wondered just how much punishment one couple can take. They've managed, with a surprising amount of quiet dignity, to carry on. When M & I were married, a couple of summers ago, she was wearing a red spotty headscarf and waiting for surgery. This time two years ago she was through treatment and looking forward. Then last year - around this time I think although I can't swear to it - she found it was in her bones and her lungs. That was never going to be good news, and on Friday it all came to an end. It wasn't a shock - we all knew she was not going to get a miracle - but it's immensely sad.

Saturday morning, I rushed up to the midlands to see my niece - she's been going through some tough times recently, and I haven't seen her for a while, so I thought it was about time I did. It would also be a good opportunity to go and visit James - the scourge of the dialysis machine - who has featured heavily in my ramblings recently. We've talked on the phone a lot over the last couple of weeks, and I'd promised to be up soon. Shortly after I arrived at niece's house, I got a message from a friend that James had taken a bit of a turn, and was heading back to HDU. Another friend was there with him, so I didn't panic - then a few minutes later the same friend called me in tears, things were quite scary. So then I panicked just a little and headed for ITU, as things were changing rapidly. Over the next few hours, friends gathered, family started travelling and doctors became more and more grave. Again, maybe I will talk another day about the love that caused people to sit with him all night, so he could always hear a familiar voice - but not quite now. All the love, prayers and positive energy in the world, even supported by the best care in the world (and another two dialysis machines!) wasn't enough, and he quietly left us on Sunday morning.

Both those people have left a circle of stunned, lost and heartbroken friends and family. I have had the immense privilege of being part of both of those circles. I have had the joy of reunions with friends I haven't seen for ages, and a sharp reminder not to let those friendships go.
I have been blessed with wonderful friends. And I am starting to sound ever so slightly pompous, which probably means it's time to shut up. G'night.