Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts. Arnold Bennett
So many changes in so little time! I write this on the day before we finally make the biggest change in our lives but this has not come about without much heartbreak and emotional challenge.
As we start a new week I wonder how we got through the last one, we're still reeling! On Monday we said goodbye to our Skye, our Border Collie, through lots of tears when Karen collected her. She happily hopped into her car after we said our goodbyes, gave us one last glance and we spent the rest of the day with a very heavy heart and expecting her to be around every corner.
My parents had to move out of their garden cottage and it was sad to see the empty shell and to feel their sadness as they were forced to make a move in their old age.
We then had to say goodbye to our live-in domestic, Winnie, who has become part of our family after 15 years.
Our house felt like it was no longer home as we moved our possessions to a storage unit and gave away and sold anything that we could. We then had to move out of our family home we've lived in for 13 years, handing the keys over to the new owners and shutting that gate for the last time was one of the hardest things we've had to do. We were so lucky to have a lovely flat to go to in Tamboerskloof with beautiful views of the city.
On top of all this, I developed an abscess on my tooth and had to spend 3 hours in the dentist's chair, having root canal. As I walked out of the dentists rooms I got a call from Stephen saying that in an hour we were getting a visit from a representative from the Dept of Education to check that our home was condusive to home schooling.....and now we didn't have a home! He visited us at the flat, I was in so much pain and could hardly speak to him, let alone trying to convince him that I was capable of homeschooling my teenage child.
Jethro our dog who was coming sailing with us, had started having seizures a few weeks ago and had various tests to establish the cause. He was put on anti-convulsive medication that made him weak and disorientated and the vet was concerned about the pupil in his eye that was not responding to light. They suspected a brain tumour and he was due to go for and MRI on Friday. In the early hours of Friday morning he took a bad turn and was unable to walk properly or even lift his head. We had to make the very difficult decision to euthanise him, the most heartbreaking thing we've ever had to do. We know now he had a brain tumour and he could never come sailing with us nor could he be left behind in SA with anyone. RIP precious Jethro, our sailing dream will not be the same without you.
This has not been easy on the boys but we have all got through this together.
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