I’ve become a very patient woman.
I’ve become a very patient woman. How to explain that in the last two years our family has endured upheavals and difficulties that, even five years ago, would have torn me apart. Yet now, I am more relaxed, much happier and more accepting of all circumstances. Even awful times make me grateful for the good times, and for every shaft of light that settles on my face after a hard day.
My mother is unwell, and it is not much of an exaggeration to say that the stress of the last two years has been a major contributor to her fragile health. I really hope that she recovers. And I hope that soon, all the legal wrangles that we have endured will be at an end; or at least, at a place where we can think about our father and brother without worrying about legal niceties.
I trained as a lawyer, which I used to say was a pity, a wrong turning I took on the road, a major detour that marred two decades of my life. Now, I’m not so categorical. I am immensely grateful that, working from home, I have been able to field and read countless emails from firms of notaries in French, Flemish and English, that I have been able to listen to my mother’s questions and advice, and hopefully reassure her that, yes, everything will soon be sorted out. (In this process I have also learned that soon is relative and one might as well ask, ‘How long is a piece of string?’ but that is perhaps a story for another day.) And through a maze of labyrinthine complexity, my legal training has helped me to keep my cool and to persist with legal nit-picks. I have been upset, I have even broken down a couple of times, but given the pressures, that is good odds, and I am pleased with this sign of progress.
Your prayers for my mother’s recovery would be so appreciated. ‘And so we go on rejoicing’ as she would say.
Please share:
October 27, 2017 @ 4:41 pm
A very patient woman, indeed, you are. Though the nature of this patience is personal, mind you pain is personal, and nothing like that to tear mind and soul to pieces and to go bananas.I think your mother is the one to have shouldered most. She is the one who suffered terribly, we all of seem to think about ourselves, this makes us fele we are patient,I am thinking of your mother, I am an outsider, but I feel her silent pain, her tristesse, I pray for her, hope you do too!
She is the woman, cracked, broken hearted, ailing, ageing, and sad. All on her conscious. heart! That is a woman, like all mothers, suffering. God be with her!
October 27, 2017 @ 5:02 pm
Thank you so much for your lovely thoughts, Wadjih. You are right indeed, and very perceptive, thank you. I pray for my mother all the time, and hope that she will find health again and have some happier times ahead. As you say, she has borne the brunt of much that has happened these last two years, and worked very hard for us all.
God be with you too. Many blessings.
October 30, 2017 @ 7:13 pm
Yes, your mother must feel her heart is being torn right out of her body….which makes your presence and legal help a wondrous gift. Odd how things work out sometimes. When my sister Diane died of ALS, my mother had already departed, seven years earlier. I’ve always thought that Mom’s demise was as much about children who aren’t ‘supposed’ to die before their parents as it was about her rapidly declining hearth. Your mom also needs you in ways she never anticipated. My prayers are with her and with you. Big hugs all round.
Elouise
October 30, 2017 @ 7:59 pm
Thank you so much, Elouise. Biggest problem for mum at the moment is she finds it hard to sleep. Maybe I’ll suggest she takes up journaling. Lots of hugs! xx
October 31, 2017 @ 11:48 am
I so hope you can sort it all out – Love and hugs
Joy xx
October 31, 2017 @ 2:23 pm
Hello Joy, thanks for visiting my blog! 🙂 🙂 So delighted you popped in. Mum is slowly getting a bit better, and maybe soon she will be back to her usual self. We hope for the best, because that’s the best thing to do!
Lots of love and hugs
Fran XXXX