The Spin Cycle Of Life

As we slip 2009 comfortably on like a new favourite sweater and sniff it under the armpits to see if it needs a run through life's washing machine, I am left wondering what this year is going to bring. 2008 was a year of highs and lows. Polly running the marathon and in the process raising more than £5,500 for Muscular Dystrophy Campaign was a real high, as was her fabulous Indian themed, elephant endowed 40th birthday party. I have delighted in this blogging business, making new friends and finding an outlet for what passes for humour and storytelling. Getting back to writing on a regular basis has been for me a real boon. Sam starting school and watching Matty blossom this academic year, Polly getting her Clown Doctor job, have all been good.

The lows, of course, include the death of Polly's father, the gentle spirit that was John Burn back in June, and the horror of the Chicken Pox outbreak the boys endured in April where Matty even had spots on his eyeball. The ongoing and never ending saga of sorting out the homecare has been an enduring source of exhaustion and occasional ill-temper which, if you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you will be well aware of.

The hardest part of 2008 has for me been the deterioration in the FSH Muscular Dystrophy. My left arm, in particular, has suffered a progressive weakening which has been inconvenient to say the least, especially because I am left handed. It has made sleeping harder because if it slips out of position during the night I awake to find it either completely numb or burning with a kind of high temperature pins and needles which I either have to endure or wake Polly to move it for me. As a kind of cruel balance, my right leg seems to have taken a fondness to cramping, possibly because it bares the brunt of any imbalance that occurs during hoisting, another fun thing that was introduced in '08. On the plus side, I've managed to negotiate around the flu epidemic that so many have been smitten with, including ironically, my GP who organised for me to have the flu vaccine.

So, what of 2009? If we can take it as read that I'd like a peaceful solution to the situation in Gaza, an end to global warning, health and happiness for my family, relief from the credit crunch and the instant imprisonment of people who spit chewing gum on to the pavement; what would I hope for this year? Well...

I'd like homecare to sort itself out and provide competent, trained carers who are not overworked and exploited. I'd like a long warm summer with plenty of sunshine. I'd like a respite from various aches, pains and the minor irritants of disability. And I'd quite like for more people to read this blog. So please spread the word, leave comments and join with me to make 2009 the year that immediately precedes 2010. Thank you for your continued support and friendship.