Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Be Be'Simcha

I try everyday to keep a positive outlook. I try everyday to keep a sense of humour. I try to smile to people everyday. I try to write only funny or interesting stories in my blog.

I like it when friends come to my house and sing for me. I like it when friends invite me to their Simchas. I like going shopping and treating myself to fun things. I like listening to all kinds of music on my MP3 player.

All these things I believe have a positive impact on my physical health.

Yesterday, someone said to me (via my husband), be be'Simcha about my health problems. I was quite cross at the time when I was told this. The advice-giver does not exactly go about with a happy face and he doesn't have apparent health problems. He doesn't have to endure the constant pain that I have all the time. This is an insensitive comment to say to an "ill" person!

Afterwards, my husband reminded me of what the Baal Shem Tov says. If anything bad happens to you or people say bad things to you, then this is a message from HaShem. We have to look for the meaning from it. I am trying to do this, but haven't had the revelation yet. I hope it comes in this lifetime...

Meanwhile trying to be be'simcha, but just don't say it to me.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

A strange measurement session

Today was my day for going to Tel Aviv to be measured for plastic leg casts. I have been waiting for this for 2 months now while all the bureaucratic paperwork was being sorted out. The secretary told me to come wearing shorts to make it easier for measurement. The whole thing was supposed to take half an hour. Not much to worry about I thought - apart from finding the place. Well I was in for a shock ...

After a long wait, Ronnie asks me to go in a room that looked a bit like a morgue. Then I was asked to take lay on a bed and take my sweatpants off. Then 2 men proceeded to cover my entire legs in bandages and plaster - right up to my knickers! After a few minutes the plaster hardened and then I was immobile. No, problem. Along comes Ronnie's sidekick with a hand-drill and cuts the plaster casts in half and just manages to miss sawing through to my knee. Then comes the fun bit, trying to shower off all the plaster which had stuck to every part of my leg. Not to forget my knickers which were as hard as concrete!

And I just thought the man was going to get a tape measure out to measure me up.

On a sadder note, it pained Moshe and me to see how many children were at this place being sorted out for leg casts. Some of them had never walked properly in their whole life. At least I got in over 40 years of walking normally. We just take these things for granted.

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Counting steps

I try and only write about positive things, so I can look back on my progress.

Progress is very slow and I am still at the level of counting steps. Today I managed to go up and down 9 steps twice. The down is the important part - very hard. Today I also learned how to get up from a chair, and how to sit back down again. These are all things everyone takes for granted, but I have to learn how to do it from scratch. Apparently so do geriatrics!

On a side note, I spent 10 days as a resident of an old people's home so I know what it feels like to be old. Not nice.... These places are terribly understaffed, and people were just left to fall asleep in their breakfasts and ignored most of the time. Something to look forward to ...

The more walking I do the better it gets. In the morning I tried to do without the wheelchair, and sit on a regular chair and use the walker. Tomorrow I get to try out a new wheelchair, so I hope it becomes a "museum piece" in our house!