I am so thrilled. Ray came back from his extra Daycare session, the first “Christmas party” for the week (yep, their week starts on Wednesday) and he has a yearbook created by the staff with the help of some friends and supporters and containing one photo for every month. It is a real work of love and I am so pleased with it I thought I would share it in a blog. But then golly gosh it has just taken me almost an hour to scan three photos and create an album here to attach to this blog. I guess I am a technomoron today!

How do we describe what excites and thrills us? How do you describe an act of kindness or a pleasant day or a triumph of the spirit? It is so easy to post on our bad days, to moan and groan and vent and have an attack of the “poor me”s. But how wonderful it is when good things happen and as Jan is always saying, our spirits soar and we feel like flying with the angels and singing out “hallelujah” to anyone who will listen.

So hallelujah folks, hip, hip, hooray for the men and women, paid and unpaid who provide the Daycare service for Ray and others of a similar need to attend. Hurray for the entertainers, the helpers, and all who provide the food and necessities for the physically and mentally challenged people who attend – bless them all.

I had a strange day today. I think I am so tired now my brain is in neutral and so I spent half an hour looking for my purse, keys etc, then drove to the shopping centre without my list and no idea what I needed to buy. By then I had an hour even to get six Christmas presents, three gift cards and some more stamps, to call back at the pharmacy and get four scripts made up etc. Well, I did most of it so I hope it is all successful and they like the presents, appreciate the money etc.

Then I dashed into chat and we chatted as usual for the hour and a bit. I could tell my girls were flagging in energy too, they seemed less outgoing tonight. This season takes a lot out of us, caregivers and stroke survivors alike and so we do as much celebrating and socializing as we can but it takes a toll. Partying is for teenagers and that is not what we are now…lol.

I am looking ahead to our time away down the south coast with our family. Hopefully this is a time to establish a new tradition – Wilkinson Christmas. It seems our other son and his family are also coming now, not sure how or when but definitely coming down. So we will have the family photos and the happy sharing…well maybe, we have all the expectations of it all working out anyway…as long as we are people of goodwill…

Ray is snoring. The combination of the hotter weather, the still humid nights and the party season are really making him tired. But so far he has been happy and we haven’t had any major breakdowns…oh such a good thing that is.

We are off to sell tickets in the Christmas stocking for the last time tomorrow. It is drawn on Christmas Eve and one lucky person will receive the contents, all $3000 worth. The ticket buyers say: “I don’t know what I would do with it if I won it”. Me neither. Get the family in, give it all away; donate it to the Salvation Army? Probably a combination of those things would be best. It is always good to remember that there are a lot of people worse off than us. Cold, poor, needy, homeless, or lost, lonely and without much hope, as Jesus said: “the poor are always with us.”

And the letters that have come with the cards updating us on family doings of near and more distant friends have cheered me up tremendously too. It is SO GOOD to hear that they are well, have more grandchildren, have finally had that longed for trip overseas. Yes, of course I am jealous, just for a second, before I think this is what I would want for them, these precious friends of mine, to be happy, to be fulfilled, to have some of those things they have been putting off till retirement.

Tomorrow I will also see my dear old Mum, God bless her. And God bless all of us too.