Photo by Steve Woodhall ~ Kloof Conservancy
Just when I feel like I’m getting better… I feel worse again. And although this is the second time I’ve had tick bite fever, the first time was a couple of years ago, so I had forgotten how awful it is. *Sigh*
Even though I would much rather be horizontal in my bed… I needed a shower… and our bed made and bedroom cleaned, and I don’t have the energy to do it myself.
So before I leap head first into a pity party while sitting comfortably at my computer, I thought of how to ‘cheer myself up’. *Smile*
These are completely random… and in no particular order… just as I thought of them. *LOL*
- I love working at home… my desk is nine steps downstairs from my bedroom, and I don’t have to deal with traffic. *Smile*
- I love pyjama days. I can work, do chores, chat with clients on the phone… and no one knows I’m wearing my pyjamas, not even you… unless I tell you. *Grin*
- I love my dishwasher. My husband bought me a dishwasher in November 2012, and it was my first home experience having a dishwasher… and I absolutely love it. Growing up, I washed dishes ever day at home… at boarding school we had group turns to wash the dishes after supper… we loaded up the dishes in these trays and sent them through the washer/steamer, then rinsed and dried… a lot of dishes… when I lived alone, there was never that many dishes to worry about, and after I got married nearly 28 years ago, I never even considered having a dishwasher… and I’ve washed lots and lots and lots of dishes. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what a pleasure it was to have a dishwasher… it’s wonderful.
- I love my notebook computer. My husband bought it for me for my last birthday, it’s new, modern and fast… and it makes my work an absolute pleasure.
- I love my work projects. There are a few, and after struggling with my old computer and software, it’s wonderful to be working so creatively again.
- I love the rain. I never used to even like the rain, and always thought of it as a necessary state of survival that I had to endure. Three or four days of overcast rainy weather would have me mourning the return of the sun. Now I love the rain and all the blessings it brings… cool clean air, relief from the dusty hot weather, nourishment for the earth, and abundance for the farmers.
- I love rainbows, even though it’s been a while since I last saw one.
- I love water… healthy, cleansing fresh water. To drink… to bathe… to shower… to swim… to wash my hands and wash my clothes. *Smile*
Do you know that Water-Deprivation is a common cause of Headaches? - I love living in Kwa-Zulu Natal… there are so many reasons why. The beauty… the weather… the people… the abundance of nature that surrounds me.
- I love living close to the ocean… even though it’s not always possible to visit the beach, and I would love to swim in the sea much more than we do… I’m grateful that we live only 37 km’s from the sea… and this year I’m going to go much more often. *Smile*
- I love my bed… it’s a huge King size affair… and an absolute pain to find bedding that fits, and which is usually really expensive… however, it’s comfortable which is important, especially when I’m sick and have to spend more hours than I want in bed.
- I love “Happy Me” shower gel. *Grin* …does it need any more explanation than that. *LOL*
- I love my daughter, Jess! ….she was born on Friday, 13th of October 1995, hence the number 13 on my list, *Smile* and she has been a blessing every day since she was born, with an Apgar rating of 10/10 despite being 6 weeks premature and absolutely tiny at 2.24 kg’s …A 10/10 Apgar rating I soon discovered was a very rare occurrence, as it was only the second time in my Gynae’s experience of 17 years delivering babies, and our Paediatricians first in 12 years of delivering. *Smile*Read more about “What is the Apgar Score?“
- I love my sons… and I’m grateful to see the potential for good men within them. *Smile*
- I love my husband… who loves me all ways and always, and I’m grateful that he showed me the difference and what it means. *Grin*
- I love my mom… and I’m so grateful for the relationship we share, even though she lives overseas. I love that my mom phones me every week, and that I can share with her… and chat to her… and I’m grateful for her kindness and generosity.
- I love phone calls… and email. And I hate Skype.
- I love reading… nonfiction… and fiction… and would happily be a professional reader if it paid well. *LOL* …and I know so many who would agree with me.
- I love writing… and sharing what I write… well sometimes. 🙂
- I love trees… growing up in the bush in some of the hottest places, I came to appreciate the shade of a tree… the symbolism of the blessings they represent… their fortitude against the elements… and their natural beauty.
- I love our dogs… even though we have too many to cope with, it’s heart breaking to say good-bye, each time we find a new home for one.
- I love music… often when I’m feeling frustrated, struggling to work and concentrate… playing some of my favourite music makes an incredible difference.
- I love the view from my window… from upstairs on a clear morning I can see the ocean 37 km’s away… and the harbour where my hubby works, so of course I wave. *Grin* From downstairs, I can see the abundant wonderful green of nature that surrounds me.
- I love butterflies… and I love watching them fly and flutter around the garden… even though I know they are laying eggs on my veggie plants, and that when the tiny caterpillars hatch they eat my veggies… and I just can’t bring myself to spray them… so we either have to leave the caterpillars to eat everything in the veggie garden, or we have to relocate the caterpillars… so my gardener thinks I’m totally nuts. *Grin*
- I love the swallows that nest on our front patio… each year for the past three Springs in September, there is a breeding pair of Swallows that have arrived… they clean the nest they made from an old wasp nest the first year… adding more mud reinforcements, and then they lay eggs, and we hear the babies… and then we watch them teach the babies to fly…. before they leave during the first week of March before the Autumn equinox.
- I love pizza… my daughter’s homemade pizza, including her homemade dough, is the best tasting pizza I have ever had… I love her pizza rolls, and pizza pies. There is just no comparison. When we buy our own home, I’m going to ensure that we build an outside family area to include a pizza oxen and griddle.
- I love bacon and eggs… especially bacon… I’ll eat it on pizza, in salad, on a sandwich… and even just as it is. *LOL*
- I love fruit… especially mangoes… and pawpaw… and sweet melon… and bananas… and grapes… and apples… and pears… and pomegranates… and well, there isn’t a juicy, yummy fresh ripe fruit I haven’t enjoyed. My darling daughter recently bought us each a Dragon fruit… my very first, and it was delicious… and so unusual. I even love fruit more than pizza. *Grin*
- I love sewing… and after many years of not sewing, I’m rekindling my enjoyment and making my very first quilt. I’ll let you know how that goes.
- I love my new website…. quilting-kzn.co.za I think it’s obvious why!
- I love flowers… just recently our local Pick n Pay floor manager sent home a bunch of Red Roses for myself and my daughter… it was one of the most thoughtful and wonderful surprises I’ve enjoyed in a while. Thank-you Lizbeth – Pick n Pay, Linkhills. We’ve known Lizbeth for the nine years that we have lived in KZN, and she has always been pleasant, respectful and helpful… and she is always in a good mood… even when I complain, Lizbeth always manages to make me feel better.
- I love Wacky Wednesday Steers Burgers… who doesn’t?
- I love that my husband, and daughter and both our sons cook… and cook well… cooking is my least favourite chore, and only second to least favourite of food preparation… I would rather clean the house, do the washing and even iron, (all of which I do) than cook. So I’m really grateful that my husband and daughter cook… I buy take-always. *Grin*
- I love my Woman of Worth website… it’s become a favourite place for me to write and share. womanofworth.co.za
- I love our Women of Worth facebook page… it’s a very special place that I’m grateful to share with each of you, thank-you. I’m really excited to work on the website, and hope each of you will contribute… no matter how small. 🙂
- I love quiet time… and solitude. Don’t get me wrong… I love my family, and I love having my family around me… and the best years of our marriage for me are the 15 years my husband and I worked together, even though we spent 24 hours a day with each other, 7 days a week… it was absolutely wonderful, and we both enjoyed it the most. If we could work at home together again… and make the money we need to pay the bills. It would be the best. And I enjoy my daughter being home as she studies… she tutors two days a week… and I love having a domestic two to three days a week to clean the house, and a gardener once a week… I am so grateful for these blessings, as my health has faltered, my greatest challenge is having the energy to do the chores and keep the house clean… however, there are moments when I wake up in the middle of the night, and it’s so quiet I can hear the wind rustling the leaves outside my bedroom window… and there are days like today, when none of the staff have arrived, and my family are out at work… and I’m home alone… with our menagerie of pets… as they lie sprawled asleep in various locations… and it’s quiet… and my thoughts are happy and creative… and I know peace and contentment. *Smile*
- I love CocoPops… it’s the lazy food preparer in me. I would rather have fresh fruit, or a smoothie… although I really miss Honey Smacks. *Sigh*
- I love colours… bright bold reds and orange and yellow. I love the azure blue of a clear sky on a summer day with a gentle cool breeze. I love green, it’s the colour of so many things… I do much prefer it in nature, and seldom wear it, or choose it in my home. I love light pale colours… lemon yellow, powder blue, lavender… and warm earthy burnt orange, terra cotta and chocolate brown. I love all colours… especially in flowers and butterflies. *Smile*
- I love uShaka… it controversial, and each time I watch the Dolphin show I cry… and I love Gambit, who I have been visiting since I was 12 years old… I love the fish, and the sharks and the vibrant energy of the place.
- I love paper… and stationery… and pens and pencils, and colouring in complex pages which I discovered I enjoyed when my eldest son had colic for 7 months, and I would only have ten to fifteen minutes to do something creative… maybe a few times a week. *Smile* I still have my coloured in posters from then… 25 years ago… rolled up in containers in my Kist.
- I love natural aromas… (and no not the icky kind *Grin*) The smell of the earth and ozone just before a thunderstorm… and the smell of cut grass… the fresh smell of the ocean in a breeze… the smell of newborn babies… and puppies. The smell of clean washing dried in the sunshine… and real flowers in the garden…. and wood shavings and sawdust… natural wood.
- I love our bunny… his name is Blue. *Grin*
- I love chocolate… it’s a new found passion. *LOL*
You may think loving chocolate is obvious… who doesn’t? Well, I could have a chocolate in my drawer or cupboard for a week or two… or more, and never even think about chocolate… yes, I go for weeks without eating any chocolate… when I do… I savour and relish ever tiny morsel. - I love stashing… some call it hoarding, some call it collecting, come call it storing for a rainy day… it does have to be organised, so I know where to find what I need when I need it. Material… stationery… wool. So what? I sew, I knit and I scrap book, when I can. *Grin* I do not however like to shop… so most of the time there is balance with what I have… and what I don’t!
- I love Tizzy… I just do!
- I love YouTube Videos that make me Laugh…. no matter how many times I watch them. These are a few of my favourites. *Grin*Evian Baby & Me! (Baby Reflection) ~ Video Link
Evian Roller Babies international version ~ Video Link
I dare you to try NOT to laugh! *Grin* ~ Video Link - I love lazy Saturdays… they are few and far between, and treasured like gold!
- I love knowing my prayers are always answered… not always what I want and when I want… however always for my good. *Smile*
- I love being 49… I hate ageing, and I’m not doing it very gracefully, especially when I have to cope with health issues and physical challenges… and weight gain. I’ve been tall, slim and trim …healthy and energetic, most of my life until after I turned 41… I’ve gained more than 25kg’s and shrunk 2,5cm’s, really!
I could think of a list of regrets…. however, that would mean denying the very dichotomy of life and the lessons and experiences I’ve enjoyed, despite the difficulties… both the sad and happy, heart breaking and soul healing… tears, love and laughter… *Smile* …and one of my most precious understandings, that it’s in loss that we appreciate with gratitude… both what we had, and even more what we have. I do love my hard earned wisdom, and harder won confidence… such as it is… and I’m so grateful for my life lessons, constant blessings, miracles, love and laughter that fill my life, and I’m especially grateful for the wonderful relationships I share with those I love.
As I started writing my list of “49 Things I love About My Life…” I wondered how I would ever manage to complete it… indicative of my ‘brain clouded, tick bite feverish unhappy mind and negative thoughts’… the more I wrote… the happier I felt… the better I’ve been.
Whilst I’m still a little shaky… it’s a great improvement on not being able to even sit up in bed, feel like I’m falling over every time I stand up… *Smile* and it’s wonderful to be on the recovering side of this illness.
There have even been blessings… lots to count. *Grin*
I haven’t done chores or housework for more than a week.
(Oh my gosh… despite the mess, the house is still standing. *Grin*)
I’ve OCD’ed on my favourite series, catching up with marathon watching sessions.
I’ve bonded with my computer, and spent hours writing… some of my very best, and even done a little work… some email, and enjoyed our Women of Worth Facebook interaction.
My daughter baked her very first cake… she makes the most delicious fudge, mouth-watering cupcakes, the best apple pies, meringues that simple melt in your mouth, and so much more… however she has never baked a cake… and I wanted chocolate cake, so Jess backed a chocolate cake and it was amazing…. with perfect icing. *Grin*
I’ve taken life very slow… and it’s been good… with wonderful moments of insight and lovely creative inspiration.
Celebrating this moment with gratitude,
Mands
#45 is the BEST! Luv ya mands! Love your inspiration and positive outlook amongst all your very tough struggles! MWAH!
Aaaaw Tizzy… love you too, always, and *Mwah* back, and Thanks!
Thank you. I hope you’re feeling better now!
Thanks Trish, I am… so much better! 🙂