Farewell Drinks at The Newcome!

The clock is ticking, it's not long before Darrell leaves for Australia. It's been great having him here for a while, despite the mess and destruction he leaves in his wake. Like me, Darrell is of course apprehensive about undertaking such a journey, despite doing it many times before. The flight to OZ never gets any easier and it does take a long time to recover. The last time I arrived in Australia, it took me a week to get over the jet lag.

Darrell's Mother has been in Hospital in Perth, undergoing treatment for cancer. The medication she was on hasn't been working, so she was admitted to Hospital, where they have tried to introduce a more appropriate panacea. Her spell at St John of God Murdoch Hospital in the southern suburbs of Perth,  seems to have gone well, taking some of the worry away from Darrell's stressful journey!

Last night Darrell came to the Newcome Arms with my Aunty Trisha and Christopher, who came down to stay in Portsmouth for the weekend, knowing it would be the last time he saw him for a while. Despite having to work, I did manage to have a few pints of Stella with everyone, wishing Darrell well on trip home. These are the memories I will cherish, while we are living apart.

As we began to say our farewells to Darrell, I received some concerning news about my Mother in Hospital in Portsmouth. Dad rang me to say Mum's condition had worsened. She was suffering from kidney failure and would have to start dialysis as soon as possible. Mother consultant explained her kidneys were functioning at less than 10% of there normal activity and they needed to carry out more tests to establish the reasons why. After a further conversation Dad discovered that the CT scan carried out earlier last week, could have contributed to her failing organs; this was not what we wanted to hear. Like Dad, I am angry that my Mother wasn't warned of the risks of a scan being carried out and believe we should have known the facts before the procedure was carried out. Mum was also asked if she would liked to be resuscitated in the event of her death. Naturally Mum said she would prefer not to go on the way she was and who can blame her. No matter how ill she has become and how hard she has fought, she has constantly come up against a brick wall, over which lies more challenges and difficulties; today Mum is tired and needs a rest!

With Mum currently in a precarious state, it would have been easier for me if Darrell was here to help me through this strenuous time. We all need a loved one or shoulder to cry on at times, but our situation isn't normal, so we have to walk a fine line and hopefully make the right choice for both our parents. The next week will be hard for everyone but I believe in time things will get better and all of us can finally live a normal life again, free from the stress of the last few years.

---

---