I travelled down to Cornwall this last weekend. A blend of pleasure and of pain. The beautiful Cornish coast, the pleasure. Visiting my Aunty in her dementia ward, the pain. For this visit I must find a way to collect myself, gather myself up. There seems no graduation and it never fails to turn the key on all the perplexities that make mental illness so wretched. My Aunt. I know she is there; but I cannot know what it is now burning, or might burn within her mind. She is dislocated from life, and almost from me and it blunts things. And then, amidst all the shouting and distraction, she looks deep into my eyes with sudden unexpected smiles assembling themselves into a pattern of extraordinary charm. There she is all over again. The Aunt I know and love.
darkness
light
but still enjoying her tea
Afterwards, I go with my husband and we stand surveying the beautiful shore of Constantine beach.
flint patterns
Visits to Padstow, Edgecombe, Cawsand and Fowey all a delight.
Fowey
Walks through snowdrop lined tree avenues near Duloe ...
a beautiful fish chandelier (want)
Then the long journey home again... with Bingley and Darcy in tow.
Bing conducting car survey (or is that - eye spy with my little eye?!)
Darcy - "...are we there yet..?"
You took the kittens with you for the day ... how nice.
ReplyDeleteThey would like the fish chandelier ^,,^
Hi JC, not quite for the day - bit too far even for them - we were down there for 4 days. H x
ReplyDeleteHello Lovely
ReplyDeleteOh, I know how tricky it must be trying to unravel the illness and find your loving Aunt in there someplace. But smiles are everything, aren't they?
I am sincerely envious of your coastal sojourn - the coast is calling to me - it is time for Lyme or indeed any beach at all !
Beautiful photos - ah, to be on Constantine beach!
Can't wait to see you sooooooooon!
D x
Bless your lovely Aunt. My mother in law had early onset Alzheimers and it was almost too painful to be with her sometimes. Our only consolation was that she was the only one who didnt know the pain.
ReplyDeletexxxx
Blessings to your Aunt. Dementia/Alzheimers of any sort is so hard to handle, and so painful to watch. I am so glad you can still "find" your Aunt underneath the illness. just holding her hand will be sich a comfort to her.
ReplyDeleteI'm adding your RSS feed to Milo and Alfie's blog so I can visit more often. I have taken my own personal blog off line ~ I just don't have the desire to update it anymore.
Jan