Closure

This past week, the first week of 2021, has been taxing. The Pandemic, the lack of availability of vaccines, the debt of a new vehicle, on a larger scale American political chaos, and on an even larger scale the political corruption and conflicts around the world… all of these things seemed overwhelming.

I need to write!!!

The wreckers came with a flatbed truck today, to pick up our old car. It gave us 10 years of service, and I felt a bit sad to see it go. It was purchased around the same time we bought Mist Cottage, and commuted weekly from the Country House to Mist Cottage to work on renovations. What a decade, so much has happened, so much has changed. Some of the changes were an extremely difficult passage, losing my younger brother, Attila deciding to leave me, then reconciling, those were truly distressing times. But time moves along, one learns how to navigate the wounds, the holes in the universe, and travel forward. In an odd way, seeing the old car leave has provided a bit of closure on the difficult bits of the last ten years. It seems it has served as a requiem for what has been lost but not forgotten, diverting all energy to the forward gaze.

The first week of 2021 has been momentous, in so very many ways. The Pandemic rages around the world, so many lost, so much fear and conflict. The political unrest in the country to the south of us, the shocking attack on the nations Capitol, by its own citizens. The slow trickle of vaccines coming into Canada, totally inadequate for the challenge, and the ceaseless conflicts between our political parties as our nation attempts to deal with the threat of Covid-19. Those are events that are close to home, and the around the world there have been many more.

On a microcosmic scale, there are the events in my life during this first week of 2021. The unwilling and unwanted purchase of a new car was a huge financial and logistical undertaking. Quite frightening really, with our financial future in such a fragile state. It was quite an entry into 2021.

We were reminded in 2020, when Attila had a medical issue and was off work, what it was like to be without any income at all. The short term disability insurance company approached his medically-advised time away from work in a punitive fashion. Not only had we no income, we had daily upset while contesting the denial of benefits with a less than friendly “case worker”. It was torment. We fought through it and won, but received no compensation until long after Attila returned to work. We are well aware now of just how vulnerable we are to severe financial consequences. Of course, this makes the purchase of a new vehicle seem extremely risky.

So 2021 has arrived with a bang as far as I am concerned.

Luckily, I’ve been able to focus on things I can do something about!

The new car needed a car seat cover for Attila to use when travelling to and from work in his soiled clothing. Two days of intense work, and an old sheet and blanket were transformed into a washable seat cover. A whole day was spent emptying the refrigerator freezer, then the refrigerator, to clean and reorganize. Cleaning food storage always reveals a few items that need to be used sooner rather than later, so time has been spent finding tasty recipes using those ingredients. Yesterday I milled flour, baked bread, and washed a load of laundry to hang on the folding racks setup in the living room. Small domestic things happily fill my days.

I do some pro bono technical support for a small family enterprise that I feel deserves friendly support. Years ago they hired me to get them setup, a friendship developed, and I haven’t charged them for years for followup support. Through my life, until living with Attila, I had worked, and given domestic support, to people who were unappreciative. It is such a pleasure to spend time and effort doing something for people who sincerely appreciate my efforts. It is priceless.

A surprising amount of paperwork has also been sorted, most of it dealt with, and most of it filed.

It seems to me 2021 could have some really steep challenges waiting for Attila and I. We will do our best to meet them. We will focus on every single bit of good fortune we do enjoy. We will find as much to celebrate about our lives as we can as we move forward. As doors close we will search for open windows. With a little bit of luck we will survive the pandemic, the financial challenges, and any other formidable mountains that rise from the mists of the future.

Stay safe dear friends!

Worldly

Weather

-9°C
Date: 9:00 AM EST Friday 8 January 2021
Condition: Light Snow
Pressure: 102.5 kPa
Tendency: Falling
Temperature: -9.4°C
Dew point: -12.2°C
Humidity: 81%
Wind: N 14 km/h
Wind Chill: -16
Visibility: 24 km

Quote

“All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure.”
Mark Twain
1835 – 1910

Some observations seem timeless.