Together is Better

Over the past few weeks I found myself at the cancer clinic with my dad.  The first time I took dad there my mind was elsewhere.  Stephen was flying to Ontario and was planning to surprise mom and dad when we got back to Napanee.  I was attentive enough to be present for dad but was excited to get back to Napanee where I could see my boy.  They did a couple of biopsies, bandaged him up and we were back on the road.  That day it was just Dad and I and it was a little more work.  I had dropped him off at the door, drove around to find a parking spot three blocks away, ran back a block to pay for parking, run back to put the ticket in the car and then back three blocks to the hospital.  I waited in the waiting room until he was done and then I ran the blocks to the car and came back and picked him up.

Today, Ron came to be the chauffeur because the weather wasn’t looking great.  He dropped dad and I off at the door and we went through the registration and found our way to the cancer clinic.  One spot was okay but on his ear they had found carcinoma…it had to be removed.  I heard the details and backed out before the slicing began.  

As I walked through the waiting room, I noticed couples sitting close together holding hands.  They sat quietly waiting for some kind of treatment.  As I watched these people I could almost see hope in the eyes of those waiting to go through the treatment.  Their loving partner held their hands and it seems like their eyes were more of fear.  I might have been imagining it but it seemed hope and fear sat holding hands.  Hope was there wanting the treatment to extend their life…give them more time.  Fear is that the treatment might not work…that the quality of life might be reduced.

One thing was for sure, they were better together.  One bringing hope and trying to calm the fears. One sitting in support and being very present.  It’s hard to go through life’s hard struggles but it helps to go through it together.  We draw strength from others when we don’t feel like we have the strength to get through.

So hold on…strength comes from those around that support you through the hard times.  Be ready to hold onto someone else when they need you.

Happy Birthday Ron!

We have been busy with birthday celebrations for a 16 year old but today we had to set that aside and celebrate Ron.  Sarah gifted Ron two golf passes.  He booked a tee time for tomorrow.

It was another hot day so the only natural thing to do was head to the lake.  Just before we left, Ron told me to grab the extra set of truck keys just in case.  I secured them in my back pack and off we went. Today we chose Bon Echo Provincial Park.  We arrived right around lunch time.  I barbequed hamburgs and we enjoyed them under a tree.

We then headed closer to the lake.  It was a very busy day at the beaches but we finally found a little piece along the water.  We swam, kayaked and went on the paddle board.  We rested on the chairs and then repeated the process.  

The afternoon went by with lots of water time.  

Around 6:30, we decided it was time to pack up. We started to look for the keys.  They weren’t anywhere that we expected.  We began looking in the unexpected places.  We retraced our steps and Sarah and Jett even looked in the water.  Thankfully, Ron had told me to bring my keys.  On our last load to the truck we kept our eyes on the path hoping to find our lost keys.  No luck.  We loaded the kayak and stopped at the park office but no lost keys there either. Even after getting home, we hoped that they would appear in one of our bags but nothing.

The moral of the story is try to be prepared for the unexpected because some times what you fear will happen.

Ron will be getting a belated birthday gift…a new set of keys.

Remembering

My father-in-law always kept a journal.  He would write down a few lines for each day so that he could remember what happened over the years.  I adopted that idea from him and in 1998 and started my journal.  So, for over 20 years, I have kept track of our days.  Sometimes it is very routine and others are more exciting.  Sometimes the memories make me smile and others not so much. 

 

So what happened in this day in history in the Clark family?

 

Oh, I won't bore you with all the details but it is interesting to see so many people that have come into our lives and so many that are still there.

 

In 2008, Jenn went for an ultrasound.  That's when it became real that we were going to be grandparents.



 

It's nice to remember that in 2014 we were in St. Thomas and spent the day snorkeling.  In 2016, we snorkeled in Belize.  Oh, they were good memories.

In 2017, my sister came to visit and we looked after my son's fur family.

We took them for dogs for a walk and Tanker knocked me over in the mud.  Good memory.....well, I think so.

Journaling is definitely a good hobby.  It involves living and experiencing life and then just jotting it down.  Life is full of ups and downs.  Looking over my journal there really are more ups then downs. The downs knock the breath out of us and the ups keep us going, help us look forward to the future and helps us get through those hard memories.

What will 2019 hold?  I'm sure there will be good and hard times.  Times of tears, joy, excitement, friendships and probably a lot of regular ho hum life will be found through the pages.  Looking forward to filling my pages by experiencing life with my family and friends.



Halloween...It's a Strange Thing!

It's one of those very strange evenings.  We open our door to masked creatures.  Parents let their children take candy from strangers and adults dress up like strange beings.

It's weird just sitting here waiting for the door bell to ring.  It's getting dark and yet, still I open the door to people I don't know to give them candy that I could eat.

But the kids are all excited and happy and very polite when they receive another sugary item in their already full bags.  I just wish that I could open the door and find this little crew waiting.

They all dressed up for school and it looked like they enjoyed another Halloween.

And Jacob won Judges' Choice for his costume.  He should be out fighting crime tonight with his Grandpa and Uncle.

I think they had a productive evening acquiring enough sweets to keep their dentist in business for awhile.

So kids, brush your teeth and get to bed.  Another Halloween night is coming to a close and now the teachers get to have fun for the next couple of days with all the extra sugar in lunch bags.

A Lonely Week

I hate these weeks.  Ron is gone for a week of training.  I miss him when he is not here.  The days drag by and then it's evening and that is worse.


I'm not entirely alone though.  I am pet sitting for my boy.

They seem to think that I have taken over as the leader of the pack.  Where I go, they come.  We went for a walk out in the back field and while I walked they did hot laps around me, widening their circle each time.  I was thankful that they came back when it was time to come into the house.  After lunch, we all laid down in the bed and I could not move with one on each side of me pinning me under the blankets.

Every once in awhile they get some energy out by running around the house and then stop for a quick tackle.

We've been invited out for supper, the three of us.  This should help them with getting rid of some of their energy by playing with Ace while I visit with Andrew and Brianne.


Meanwhile at the house, Lilly is content wherever she is.  She is the Queen Bee of the troop.

So while I miss Ron, the fur family and I will hang out and then when they leave I will clean the house and go to work.  The week will go by and then I will be happy when the weekend arrives.

On Hold

So I woke up to a rainy day.  My plans were to take it easy after a long week of training.  Ron went to work and I went downstairs to get a phone to call my dad to wish him a happy birthday.  Down the stairs I went...splash!

The sub pump decided not to work through the night.  Now we are trying to find the right people to help clean up the mess.  So much for a sleepy day.

I guess my reading will have to wait and I was so looking forward to it.

So for those who have been waiting for house pictures...let's just put that on hold too.