We seem to be rather a different timetable with our care agency this morning. Despite the planning sheet with which we are issued once a week, things often change on a daily basis. Whereas the normal 'getting up' time for Meg is normally 8.00am or sometimes 8.30am, this has been re-timed this morning to some time after 10.0am which is unusual. I think that what has happened is that the care agency think Meg should be confined to her bed for much of the time, a move which I have resisted until now. But now the Bank Holiday is over, we are hoping from an assessment visit from the palliative care team and as they probably wish to examine Meg, she needs to be in her bed in any case. So we are prepared for the late start on this particular occasion and then we have to see what (if?) the palliative care team and then start a process of 'playing it by ear' As a creature of habit, I much prefer a more settled routine to which we have become accustomed over the months but we need to accommodate to changing circumstances. As Meg is asleep so very much of the time, I di not suppose it makes a great deal of practical difference but sometimes after a 'bad' day we have a 'good' day and vice versa. Last night, I managed to use a syringe to get some drops of water into Meg's mouth and the care workers were excellent in helping me to achieve this. But I also managed to get a little pot of custard-and-jelly inside Meg in the evening which acted as a vehicle for hr normal pills which was a bonus that I did not expect.
In Rome, the world's attention is turning to the conclave in which those cardinals aged less than 80 who are entitle to vote will participate in the centuries old and secret tradition of electing a new Pope. The Italians themselves are already speculating on the outcome with several Italian cardinals in the running b ut an Asian or Afran candidate n ot being ruled out. The most recent conclaves - for Pope Francis in 2013, Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 and Pope John Paul II in 1978 - all lasted less than three days. Except for the first day, when only one ballot is held, the cardinals hold four daily votes - two in the morning, two in the afternoon - until one candidate has a majority of two-thirds plus one. In this case the required number is 89. After each round of voting, the ballot papers are burned and a black die added to turn the smoke from the specially installed chimney to black. But when a successful candidate has been chosen, a special die is added to the bundle of ballot papers to turn the issuing smoke to white. And then the announcement is made from the balcony of St Peters that 'Habemus Papa' ('We have a Pope') and the name of the newly elected Pope is announced. If I might engage in. little speculation of my own, I suspect that if the newly elected Pope assumes the name of 'Francis II' this will be a signal to the world that the reforming tendencies of the previous Pope will be continued. On the UK domestic front, MPs are returning to Parliament after the recent tumultuous local elections and it could be that Labour MPs are in both a fearful and a rebellious mood. After all, when canvassing on the doorstep, the issue of the withdrawal of the winter fuel allowance must have been mentioned to every one of them and never has so much political damage been done for the saving of comparatively small amounts of money.
This morning I seemed to be on the phone most of the morning, the only really productive phone call being to the company who installed the stir lift about a year ago asking them to now uninstall it. I did get a phone call from the Palliative Care team but was dismayed to learn that their hands were tied until they had received an official quest from the GP's surgery which was n o forthcoming. This then necessitated a phone call to the surgery and after a long wait, I vent my anger at them that the request that should have made by them on Friday afternoon, they were just getting around to it now, the weekend and the Bank Holiday intervening. I had to point out to them forcefully that when one if at end -end-of-life scenario, a wait of four days is intolerable and it was within the realms of possibility that the Palliative care team would arrive on the scene too late. In the middle of the day, we had Meg's normal 'sit' carer plus two late morning carers, but Meg's breathing was so laboured at this point that we thought she might only have an hour left to live. I called my son who came around promptly and our Italian friend phoned so I appraised her o the situation and she came around as well. In the event Meg had a pretty tranquil afternoon and seemed to be peaceful, pain free and comfortable. The care company staff are all now informed of the situation so our collective aim i to keep Meg in bed and as calm, comfortable and pain free as is possible with minimal handling. So I am reconciled in my mind and soul as to what the next few hours or even day or so might bring but am relieved, so far, that Meg is experiencing a tranquil end to her days on this earth. Tomorrow morning the District Nurse team will call around and they might summon the Palliative Care team but perhaps, too little and too late. Last night whilst Meg was in bed and before the issues of today developed, I managed to down a Handel aria ('Waft her, angels, through the skies') for which I paid the princely sum of £1.20 but now I have a legitimate copy of the requisite .mp3 file. I am making some tentative plans for the days ahead which are to follow and although Meg appears not to recognise me any more (which is painful) I am trying to reassure myself and all who care for Meg that she has a tranquil passage out of this world.
© Mike Hart [2025]