Various Surprises

 

A couple of weeks ago I stood up after lunch one day and pulled a muscle in my leg. How does that even happen? It's not like standing up is an extreme sport or anything. Ok, some days standing up feels like an extreme sport, but we all know it really isn't. Anyway, I took it as an omen that that universe wanted me to lie on the couch for several days. The dog agreed with me.

Two days into my new couch-based life there was a tap on the window at lunchtime, and it was The Girl! Come all the way from Melbourne! Most states in Australia have been in some kind of lockdown since March, and here in Tasmania interstate travel has been effectively banned without a two-week hotel quarantine. The ban for travel from Victoria lifted at the end of November, and The Girl had sneakily and with great cunning sneaked up on us to surprise us.

I shrieked like a train whistle and hobbled shrieking through the kitchen where Red demanded to know what I'd done to myself this time. "Front door!" I shrieked incoherently (so much shrieking), while waving violently and hobbling to wrestle the door open. I completely lose my head and the power of speech in every crisis so it's lucky I don't have many of them. After that there was lots of hugging and tears, and after we had recovered we drove to the cafe Rosy works at and there were more shrieks and hugging and also lunch. 

The Girl succeeded once more in blindsiding us with her general amazingness and clearly knew just how much we had needed to see her. We had a wonderful four days - Red and Rosy had their big sister back and I had lots of time with my beautiful girl. The universe even conspired with us when she left and delayed her plane so we got an extra hour together in the airport cafe. 

And a photo of the cat so she won't get jealous.

It is marvellous to have grown up children who are busy working their own lives out, but who still want to be part of my life as well. They all bring so much joy to my daily life, and they push me and challenge me and keep me honest, with them, and with myself. Has anyone noticed how this generation of young people seems so wise? They think a lot. They are realists. They see very clearly. My lot seem so much more grown up than I was at their age, despite the fact I was a parent when I was younger than my oldest two are now. I am very optimistic about the future when I think of how my kids are turning out.