Catching up with housework

It’s been a funny old weekend. I think the haze of pain and painkillers is finally leaving me, I’ve done some work on my book and tried to catch up a little on housework not done over the past few weeks. Not doing my work here disconnects me from my purpose so getting back to it feels comfortable and reaffirming.

Hanno is sick now. I don’t know what’s going on! We have been pretty healthy all our lives then all of a sudden we’ve fallen in a hole. I took Hanno to the doctor on Saturday morning as his blood pressure was fluctuating and just before we drove up the mountain, it registered at 85/60! Two days ago it was 150/95. At the medical centre it was 90/65. He was also tired and had problems with his waterworks. The deadbeat doctor didn’t bother doing a urinalysis! He just gave him a referral to a pathologist to have a urinalysis and a blood test on Monday. Hopeless! Anyhow, we came home and spent a quiet day with him sleeping on and off. He feels a little better now but will go back to his regular doctor during the week for a proper checkup.

It’s been two weeks since I slept a full night in our bed but the past two nights I’ve slept like a baby. Sunday morning woke at 4am – which is my usual routine – checked the blogs, emails and did some work on the book. I had breakfast, Hanno woke at 7am and then talked to his nephew in Germany for an hour or so on Skype while I talked to my sister, Tricia, on the phone. Hello Tricia! She reads my blog every day now.

I fed Alice and Hettie and let the chooks out for a while. Walked through the garden checking out the vegetables and deciding what we’d eat that day. I watered various plants, checked seedlings, picked about 5 kilos (11 pounds) of tomatoes and fed a selection of green leaves to the chooks.

Bread was made, washing up done and one load of washing was hung in the sun to dry. Then I spent an hour or so listening to the radio while I sorted through a pile of laundry that needed folding and some of it, ironing. That allowed me to sort out my clothes for work today too. When I took the folded and ironed clothes into the bedroom, I made the bed and cleaned the bathroom.

I have set up a workstation in the sewing room because I can go there and close the door to work undisturbed on the book for as long as I like. I made some notes about new ideas, mapped a loose timetable for myself to catch up on the missed time over the past three weeks, and went through some notes and clippings. It’s really lovely in my sewing room. I have a view of the front garden, a radio, fan and all manner of yarns, cottons, scissors and needles. Where ever I look there is either fabric or yarn, and jars full of buttons and pieces of ribbon. I am at home there, I’m in my natural habitat.

After lunch I checked on what oils I have on hand, as I’ll be making soap during the week, and then made up a batch of laundry powder. I sat down to read some more Nourishing Traditions and ended up napping for an hour. Bliss. It's a real joy to be able to nap whenever you need to. Slowly, over the course of the next two hours, dinner was made, the garden checked, worms fed, pot plants watered and shoes polished.

It was gloomy outside all day with the threat of rain. Hanno took down the washing in the late afternoon while I did more work on the book, we ate dinner, I tidied up and did a few rows of knitting. A fairly busy day drew to a close.

I am grateful to be back caring for my home. Sitting in a chair all day bores the living daylights out of me - even if that time is sprinkled with knitting and reading. The real work of a home involves physical effort and nothing is as life affirming or satisfying as spending a day putting things to rights when they've been left undone. I'm not quite done with my catching up but I'll get there soon. I have work today and tomorrow but I'm thankful that I am well enough to go.

I hope you are all well and able to do whatever your work requires of you. Thank you for all the prayers and good wishes I've received over the past couple of weeks. I appreciate them and you.