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                                                  STROKES ARE VERY CHALLENGING 
In late September, Willie, our housemate of forty years, now age ninety-one, had a fairly severe stroke that left her right side--face, hand, leg--badly impaired.  After she had a brief hospital stay and two weeks of intense therapy at a rehab facillity, we decided that her continued recovery would be best served by bringing her home.  It was, we believe, the best course of action, even though the first couple of weeks here at home left Dorothy and me exhausted because Willie needed contant help day and night with nearly everything.  Three months later, the situation has stabilized somewhat and Willie is capable of some self-care.  With the help of sessions with Visiting Nurses twice a week and coaching from us, she has regained  the ability to use her right hand to write, can move around adeptly in a wheelchair at night and a walker during the day.  She's beginning to learn how to walk with a cane.  We've been able to take some outings to see her MD and to get a Covid shot (Covid is running rampant in Western Massachusetts since the holidays) at her pharmacy.  She loves playing balloon tennis (batting an inflated balloon back and forth with a racquet, a good balance exercise). She has a long way to go, and it's not at all certain how much she will have recovered by six months post-stroke.  Our lives have been largely Willie centered for months now and probably will remain at least somewhat so for the foreseeable future.  Wish us luck.  We welcome your prayers.

Sheltering in Place.3: July-August 2020

        Dangerous storms surround us.

 

We are now beginning the sixth month of sheltering in place. We've gotten into a routine that brings to mind the movie Groundhog Day. Every day closely resembles all the previous days. Wake up; meditate; Dorothy has her espresso while I make her breakfast (always the same: hot cereal with banana and honey); do some yoga or light exercise; read the mail; do chores; have lunch; more chores and more reading; eat dinner; play Scrabble; go to bed. Admittedly, every day is not exactly the same. Once a week Gerry does grocery shopping at the local supermarkets, and Dorothy has an appointment with her P.T. on most Wednesdays. Book titles change too. Gerry has already completed his Goodreads 2020 Challenge of seventy-seven books; Dorothy always has two or more books in progress at any given time. We both read some old Dorothy Sayers mysteries featuring Lord Peter Wimsey and found her Busman's Honeymoon outstanding in that Peter and his bride (Harriet Vane) explore the newness of their relationship in deeply moving passages. We are fortunate that we live in a town and a county where Covid-19 cases are rare, but the menace the virus poses to our health and well-being is an ominous presence. The nation is in political turmoil with an election now less than 100 days away and its results unlikely to be known for a month or more after November 3, and doubtless disputed even then. Our little town won't be a problem because we always vote by paper ballot. But the underlying feeling is anxiety about how the virus and the election will work out. Our home is an island of calm that like the eye of a hurricane is peaceful, but we are surrounded by turmoil on all sides.

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