Waking Up In Different Ways
This week seems to have flown by – is time actually speeding up or am I just getting older?
I’ve had a few bouts of feeling down, and have been finding it hard to get stuff done. It’s all a bit blah sometimes… feels hard to create something new or innovative. It’s good to remember that sometimes, rejuvenating, revamping or repurposing an already existing structure can be enough. We all put our own stamp on things. Sometimes, that creates something amazing!
I’ve been watching lots of music “reaction” videos (fun!), and have seen lots of variations on original songs.
Here are three versions of one song – all amazing renditions, all showing the personalities of the artists.
Here’s the original.
Perhaps a bit of country acapella?
Or just a romp through time.
With cellos.
Whichever one you choose (and you can even choose all of them!), I hope you wake up with a sense of purpose, and knowing how you can make your mark on your world.
❤
Of Dried Roses And Dancing Waves
My birthday was weeks ago now. Seems like years, in some ways… I still have a lovely bouquet of roses that I was given. They dried beautifully – even kept a bit of their colour.
Today, I am still recovering from some surgical procedures from last week that didn’t quite go the way they were planned. I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I had to be woken up, and still need to go back at some point to get things done again.
I feel almost like the roses.
Dry. Past their best. A bit more fragile than they were.
Still functioning to create beauty, though.
After I was woken up, they tried to explain some of what had happened. As far as I understand, any future anaesthetic could be dangerous for me, and I need to warn medical staff if it’s needed at a later date. Also – I still have the original issues that prompted the whole thing…
I think that all this isn’t likely to affect my daily life, but sometimes I still feel the fear of possibilities. I pray to, and trust, God to hold my life, and to do what’s best. There’s still those moments, though, when I am alone in the darkest hours, and the bottom drops out of hope and light.
Just for a second.
In the last week or so, this has been the song I’ve been listening to –
There’s always room for dancing, however high the waves.
And remembering Who I have to fall back on…
A Starring Role?
…or at least a couple of seconds in one of the slightly bigger boxes (amongst all the others!) 😆
Here’s the latest Couch Choir clip – an original song by Astrid Jorgensen.
Enjoy!
😀
Waiting In The Sun
Sun’s out.
The torrential rain has finished for the time being, at least round our way. We’re still waiting to see what will happen later in the week.
Our house was fine – we had to dig some trenches and redirect water, but that was more a drainage problem than a flooding issue. There’s a sort of a lull at the moment. There are still roads flooded in town, making essential shopping a bit harder. Supplies in the shops were running low over the weekend, and restocking might be a problem. We’re fine. There are many who aren’t, so we’re waiting to see what’s needed once the waters recede enough to be able to do something. We’re not much good these days for heavy lifting, but we can do meals/groceries, and we still have a bed and sofa for anyone needing them. 🙂
Last week I sent in my part for the latest Couch Choir. Not sure when it will all be put together, but here’s a Pub Choir clip (pre-Covid!) that seems to be appropriate. It’s probably been appropriate for at least the last three years or so!
It might seem like cold comfort to someone surveying the wreckage of everything they own, and of course there are long term effects that will need to be addressed. But we can all still pitch in as a community.
One of the good things I’ve found over the last few years (at least for me) is a sense of connection to places and people I would never have met or seen otherwise. It feels almost like we could go anywhere and see anyone we wanted to pre-Covid, but had got into the habit of not connecting. Perhaps we didn’t feel the need for community quite so much, and so were careless about it building and maintaining it…
I hope that in our future we can remember to maintain the nourishing things, and continue to keep away from the unhelpful things.
Speaking of futures – here’s a possible one!
Who knows? 😆
People All Over The World
It’s pouring outside – good to see the rain, but it’s meant a bit of digging to prevent flooding.
Elsewhere, it seems like the world is on fire.
Apart from global events, there are also personal losses and worries seemingly everywhere you look…
I’ve been looking for cheerful songs that make me feel like dancing. Here’s one –
Seem a bit flippant?
I think it’s important to remember there’s still the possibility of love.
Of course, targeted action is important, too – we all have a voice, in some capacity.
We also need to remind ourselves to see the ordinary people. The ones that are dissenting, even at great cost. The ones that are just like us, only in a dangerous situation not of their own making.
In my lifetime I have seen people causing pain and horror, whether for nations, families, or individuals. I still believe that the majority of people tend towards kindness. It doesn’t matter what someone else believes; it certainly doesn’t matter what they look like. We’re all people. We can look into each other’s eyes and see family. And we can care for and encourage each other.
Even so, this day may just be too much for you.
Sleep.
Wake up to another day.
Those of us who are able to can hold things up (in prayer, practice, encouragement) when you just can’t in this moment.
❤
To The Heart Of It…
Valentine’s Day today!
❤
My Babe is cooking a special meal for this evening (steak and mushrooms, followed by icecream). He’s out this morning, and we’re not planning wild shenanigans to celebrate the day. I haven’t got anything as such for him – sometimes just getting a box of chocolates is not quite the thing (most times it is – let’s not get silly here!) Instead, I have chosen some songs which feel like they reflect parts of our journey, and sent them to him.
❤
…and if you haven’t yet got a gift for your significant other, here’s some hints 😆
Roses, On The Road
It was a big week last week – at least the last few days. I celebrated my birthday on a few of the days 🙂 , and there were other appointments to get to.
Unfortunately, this week has started off slowly, with fatigue and pain… there are still more appointments to get to in the next few days, but for today, I am resting.
One of my birthday gifts was a bouquet of roses, from a beautiful lady from church. They smelled lovely too!
❤
I’ve been too tired to even do much reading today (although I’ll try again later!), so I’m listening to a Home Free playlist.
They sing more serious songs beautifully, but today I was more in the mood for Fun 😀 – whether simply musical enjoyment,
embracing technology in the midst of quarantine
…or just a bit of 80s nostalgia!
I was going to question whether we really wore stuff like that, but then I remembered – not only did we, but somewhere out there, there is photographic proof 😆
I hope your day is pain free and full of energy.
But, if it’s not, I hope you can still hear some fun music in your heart…
❤
Picking Flowers
…or photos of them, anyway 😆
I’m back on the Centrelink treadmill, supposedly trying to find work. There’s lots of jobs for doctors. Or Uber drivers. Or maybe labouring of some sort…
I’m not much good anymore for 8 hour days, especially when you figure in travelling time as well. When I was younger I could work 16 hour days/6 days a week, hauling mail bags that were sometimes up to 25-30ish kilos. That was a long time ago.
When I told my job provider that I would find it difficult to do full time hours, they sent me back to Centrelink, who sent me off with medical forms for disability. Turns out I have a chance 😆 , although I’ve heard from others about how difficult it is to qualify.
I now have a (double) appointment for the doctor to go over the form with me. This is separate to the appointment I had already made with the doctor over something different, which meant I had to reschedule the appointment with Centrelink to discuss the form that would not have been filled in before the appointment that had been made initially. That rescheduling was surprisingly easy. Turns out Centrelink are more flexible than my doctor!
This morning I had another appointment added, this time for a hospital check up that’s been working its way up a referral list somewhere – I can’t even remember how many referral lists I’m on now.
I’m hoping to go out for my birthday next Friday, but we’ll see how much energy I have left!
Anyway – while I’m in a sort of holding pattern, I have time to share some photos of flowers that I’ve taken over the last few months 🙂
More flowers, but this time on the wall 🙂
(sometimes, this is how I feel…)
Hopefully in a few weeks I’ll start to see what’s growing…
❤
1000 Fields of Roses 