Last night after Meg had been put to bed and appeared to be sleeping soundly, I took the opportunity to have a video link with my sister who I should have contacted the day before but other phone calls intruded. After this, I made contact at her invitation with one of Meg's nieces with whom I get on particularly well - in fact, she and her husband attended our 50th wedding celebrations in Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain which they enjoyed very much. Meg's cousin had lost her own mother to dementia some thirteen months ago but at that stage Meg was too ill to attend to travel to attend the funeral which was a source of sadness for us both. Also Meg's niece had a big operation for cancer a few years ago but fortunately, I was to learn, is still in remission. Meg's cousin said she would drive up from Gloucestershire to see us but I indicated that this was a wonderful offer but I was coping all right at this stage. Now to return to my tidying up agenda because I needed to attention to my kitchen table. This has upon it a series of ceramic bowls into which we have go into the habit of storing bits-and-bobs. Now these have grown over the weeks and months and needed a radical sort out. The day before, I utilised my new refurbished filing system to ensure that all the piles of paper went into their correct homes and this left the bits and bobs, none of which had a natural home. Amongst the things I found were some lanyards that Meg could wear if we went out and she became separated from me as well as a variety of Pilates stretch bands. I have managed to find a good home for these bits-and-bobs such that I know what they are and where they re. What came to my salvation was one of a collection of storage baskets that Poundland used to sell and which were excellent, as it happened, for storing CD's. But these particular storage baskets were of an excellent shape and has a stout handle built into the side so you could easily store the same in a cupboard but retrieve it easily without spilling the contents all over the place. Unfortunately, this make and design of basket is no longer stocked and I have an eye on a replacement size and shape which I may purchase for future use so that I always have a good storage location for those things that do not have a natural home. I now have the kitchen table absolutely decluttered and shipshape and probably looking in better order than it has at any time in the past ten years. I am now turning my attention to a subsidiary kitchen table which Meg used to use a long time ago as her workspace and this is crying for decluttering treatment as well. It is rather full of files detailing medical and care arrangements but no doubt, I can get that turned around as well.
The day before, we saw the fairly rapid election of a new Pope - an American cardinal who has chosen the name of Leo XIV. You might have thought that an American cardinal would not have been the first choice of many but he had worked as a missionary priest in Peru for a period of 9 years and had even taken out Peruvian citizenship. This may have helped to detoxify his candidacy and he appears to be a good linguist having excellent Spanish as well as Italian. He had previously been appointed by the last Pope, Francis, to head up the body responsible for the selection of new bishops so was well integrated into the power structures of the Catholic church. He appears to be a moderate but progressive on some important issues such as an enhanced role for women in the Catholic church. He could be that he emerged as a compromise candidate but we shall soon see what kind of papacy we shall have when key, essentially political-style appointments, are made as they within his gift as a new Pontiff.
This morning, Meg's breathing was starting to become erratic and she was emitting some gurgling noises which were alarming in the extreme. I telephoned the District Nurse and got a very sympathetic soul who appeared within about an hour. She reassured me that Meg was not in any pain or distress and relatives, such as myself were often worried but there was a simple explanation. As Meg's swallowing reflex had disappeared there is a build up of fluids in the throat and this what causes the strange sounds. She administered a special injection to Meg and said if things were no better in an hour then she would come again and administer a further dose. But the medication proved to be very effective and it enabled Meg to sleep peacefully throughout the morning. Then the Eucharistic minister turned up again and we had a special few prayers said by the bedside. we exchanged our thoughts on the election of the new Pope and what it might mean for the future of the Catholic Church and particularly the role of women within it. After our friend had departed, our son came along after his own doctor's appointment and we sat quietly with Meg until the two late morning carers arrived. What they had to do for Meg was actually quite minimal and they were very careful and tender in their handling of her. When they came to leave, knowing it might be the last time they would be called upon to administer to Meg, one of them was in tears and the other very close. It must be emotionally draining for the carers s well as for myself and there were lots of hugs all round. After they had departed, and my son was sitting with Meg, I shot off down the road to pick up my daily newspaper. The very kindly Asian 'partner' as they are called in Waitrose gave me a hug and pressed a bunch of yellow roses into my hand which I put into the bedroom even though Meg is not in a position to appreciate them. Then I made a lunch of quiche accompanied by some salad even though my appetite is suppressed. I also seized the opportunity whilst my son was here and sitting by Meg's bedside to get the front lawn area cut so that mowing activities do not intrude upon the rest of the weekend.