Getting away

Sunday, 7 July 2024

After a quick turnaround from our Ballarat trip I took mum and Stella up to Devonport so they could attend the funeral of one of my grandfather’s & their father’s close friends.  Despite the sad reason for the trip it was actually a fun little getaway, particularly for mum who hadn’t been able to leave dad overnight for a long time (except when forced into hospital some months earlier).

On the way up we drove by the Western Tiers route which meant lots of nice landscapes and also the opportunity to do the very short walk to Pine Lake.  Despite a chorus of complaints and excuses, the forced march was successful and the complainants were rewarded with anzac biscuits before we continued our journey.

The following day in Devonport I spent the day working from our inappropriately named ‘executive suite’ while mum and Stella attended the funeral but were first delayed by their arrival at the wrong church. They sorted themselves out and were pleased to be in attendance with the other mourners. Grandfather’s friend Snowy had enjoyed a long and adventurous life.

That evening we dined at some old friends of mum’s which was lovely then the next day we did a huge drive home via St Helens where I was finally able to show mum our beautiful house as well as a few of my favourite places nearby.

After a zillion more stops to charge the car we arrived home late in the afternoon – very happy with our delightful mini-break.  …

Unfortunately covid arrived home with us too – likely as a result of the funeral gathering – I dodged it but mum, Stella, her husband, and then ultimately and most seriously Dad all succumbed.  Dad very quickly deteriorated and had to go by ambulance to the hospital in the middle of the night where he ended up being for almost a month.  Covid took a lot of his physical condition but much worse, a lot of his cognitive abilities, so the consequences have been major and he has had to transition to a nursing home sooner (but not much sooner) than we thought. The only positive is that this route has meant more support from the health system to find a place and ensure it has been as smooth as possible.  He’s now just a 15 minute walk from mum in a nice place with good care. We couldn’t ask for much more than that.