Update to my friends/family.
I’m still waking up, dreading boxes to be unpacked and finding ways to get rid of the boxes. We have way too much stuff as we focus on house nesting and preparing comfortable quarters for Hector that arrives this next week.
My last week has been near-daily doctor appointments, and I still have a couple of new ones to meet. The days seem shorter even though I’m usually up at dawn. I have been meditating daily in the quiet of the morning to deal with my anxiety exacerbated by the withdrawal from the medications. The numbness and cramping are more evident as I cut down on the drugs.
Our pets have made adjustments. After doing well on the road trip, they are now very mellow. Angie (and me sometimes) takes them to the dog park (if it is not raining.) It rained two days this last week, but it seems there is usually at least a slight chance of rain nearly every day. Both the dogs and the cat have found their comfort zones in the house. They no longer get up when I do, and they all stay in bed with Angie until she gets up. They are her children, and they seem to surround her when she sleeps. I love this scene when I wake in the morning. It is a bundle of warmth, love and security.
Angie seems to be handling the change very well. She and her friend Lisa visit or talk daily, and I think that close friendship helps her.
She started back up doing her hula with her excellent friends online on Wednesday, which is healing. My wife has been my rock as I have struggled with my medical challenges and episodes of pain and changes in mood. I’m so lucky.
A new challenge that we both have with activities based out west is the time change and things starting so much later for us. Most mornings, I want to call a friend and check-in, but it is too early. Hi Jimmy! I’m thinking about you daily.
We are both continuing counseling with some clients we have in California, but as I said, it is a challenge as it all moves to a later time for us. I’m usually out of energy by 3 pm central time, and I have a group that starts at 7:30 to 9 pm. I’m not entirely retired, yet.
I continue my noon meeting at the same group, and everyone already seems to greet me as if I’ve been with them for quite a while. I know many of their names. I feel safe similar to how I felt in my early days of recovery 37 years ago.
I signed up for another year-long writing course and look forward to creating short stories and relating memories to my distant family members in my blog.
Today we are going to an indoor farmers market and investigating for a two-person hot tub. I hot tub every night to put me to sleep, and I miss it.
We haven’t been to many restaurants yet, but Angie has already discovered her favorite BBQ place, and it’s only four blocks away.
Well, this sums up a lot of the week—one last thing. As we packed to leave and said goodbye to our life in California, it became pretty stressful. This week, I looked back at my journal and found this little prayer I wrote before we left.
I’d like to believe it worked, so I say a prayer this morning for all of you I love and miss.
Until another morning…
Paul (The Fool on the Hill)
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