On Waking Up

I woke up with a stinking headache. That was very unusual.

It was pitch black. There was no electricity. Where was the bedside torch? What happened to my emergency lighting? I became quite disorientated. What was happening?

Eventually, after what seemed like an age, I woke up - properly.

The first 'waking up' was a dream (headache included). However, I then lay awake for ages before eventually getting up around 0630. I could not stop thinking about the millions of people in the world at the moment for whom such an event can be commonplace (not always in the pitch dark but nevertheless....). I suppose I was thinking particularly at the moment of Gaza and Ukraine although they are just the principle ones in the British news. 

However it's not 'just' being disoriented. What about millions of people who don't just get up and go. For example many people (including me) have some degree of 'external plumbing' or prosthetic limbs or are on a breathing or sleep aid of some sort. For many many people getting out of bed is not a straightforward matter at the best of times. 

And then there's the millions who don't even have a bed.

Since the Iraq war was brought to us live on television, we are now at the stage where we see all these things on television in our own homes and we take them for granted. We do nothing because they are happening 'somewhere else' to 'someone else'. 

For the time being......

PS: My next post will be cheerful....promise!

Dreams

I'm not a big dreamer and if I do dream I rarely recall them.

Last night was a complete departure.

I woke in the early hours because the preparations for a huge family party were not going to plan. Given that in my lifetime I have never been to a 'huge' family party this seemed rather strange. I woke up. Then returned Lethewards once more. 

The next thing I knew was that the huge family party had been planned and was in full swing. I was a bystander. 

This repeated itself with different details and subplots several more times.

Eventually everything got too much for me and a row ensued over someone trying to tell me that a huge rice dish had been prepared two weeks ago to let the flavours meld. As everyone knows rice can be one of the least safe dishes to keep hanging around for two days never mind two weeks.

I lost the plot and woke up for the umpteenth, and final, time and despite not yet being 0630 I got up and made coffee and started this whilst I could still recall any of it.

Does anyone have frequent or remembered dreams? 

Catriona

I promised that I would blog about Catriona, now preferring to be called by the trendier (in her view) name of Cat. 

Catriona (old habits die hard) and I first 'met' when she was 3 years old and living in New Zealand to where her family had emigrated. They were living on a 5 acre life-style plot in Poraiti near Napier on the East Coast of North Island. I had known Wendy and Martin since 1989 when they came to live on Lewis but moved away before the children were born.

Probably the first picture I took of Catriona was what has become one of my iconic favourites of the first visit I made in 2005.

Catriona's fourth birthday occurred during my first visit to New Zealand which was only 6 weeks long. On her birthday there was a party for her at her pre-school group to which parents (and honorary grand-parent) were invited. After the party I promised Catriona that I would be there for her for her 'graduation' from pre-school to school on her fifth birthday.

That was a promise which, unknowingly, was to change the rest of my life in so many ways.

The seasons of Scotland and New Zealand are, of course, the reverse of each other. My visits to New Zealand always included their summer. 

When I came to book the plane for my next visit to keep my promise to Catriona I decided on the outward journey date in early September. I entered the date and suddenly realised that I'd given absolutely no other thought to the visit and, in particular how long I would stay. 

Our elder son had just died on my birthday and rational thinking about anything was rather outwith my capabilities.

I do, however, recall sitting at the computer and my brain suddenly saying "Wotthehellarchiewotthehell just go for 6 months". So I entered a date 6 months from the outward trip.  Then I had to tell Wendy and Martin. 

My promise to Catriona was fulfilled and my new life was about to begin.

More about Catriona soon.

For those who are new to my blog my New Zealand life was covered in my blog A Hebridean in New Zealand (See link in sidebar).