Post Workplace Abuse: Life Goes On ... and on and on and on

As I've pointed out before in this blog, life doesn't stop because you're going through trauma.  Life goes on.  Hour by hour, day by day, week by week, month by month and year by year.  Deaths, birthdays, life changes, illnesses, etc.

Saturday, I experienced a significant milestone on my journey:  my 65th birthday.  I am officially a senior citizen now.

Significant events cause me to look back over the past year and realize what the most significant events in my life were.  What means the most to me now as opposed to a year ago, two years ago, etc.?

What means the most to me now is family ... and friends.  Those people who have walked with me closely in this journey.  Those people who have never given up on me.  Like my husband, my daughter, her husband, my grands.

Today's blog will be about my birthday in 2013 ... just because ....

The trailer their gear was stowed in

The children's song goes "the wheels of the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round.  The wheels on the bus go round and round all day long."

So did the wheels on the bicycles of a group of people of all ages and from all walks of life who rode from Sea to Sea last year raising funds for poverty and awareness of poverty.  They lived out of baskets (two each, I think) on this trailer for the summer.  They slept in tents and on floors mostly.  And they rode their bicycles six days a week through every kind of weather imaginable - except for snow.

They started in California last year, rode through deserts and very, very hot weather, so hot that the tour had to be suspended for a few days and the riders and their bikes driven to another point around the very hot weather.  On August 9th, 2013 (my birthday) they drove through our area stopping for the night within a few miles of our house.

I had wanted to drive my bike with adult training wheels to meet them ... but was not able to do that.  My body simply had not recovered enough strength to do that.  I had wanted to have someone drive me to the nearest interesection so I could wave at them as they rode by and possibly hand out goodies.  That didn't happen either.

What did happen, though, was that my daughter and grands came by and we went to their stopping place for the night and gave them a variety of chocolate bars.  We even got to meet some of the riders (the early birds, the go-getters).

A rider picking out his candy bar.

Ok, Cassie so what does this have to do with you and your birthday?  Nothing really.  Yet it had to do with my journey of recovery.  I loved to bike, but last year it became evident that I

Early birds got the responsiblity of throwing all the gear i.e. tents, sleeping bags, etc. out of the trailer.

This was significant to me because although I was, and am still, totally incapable of doing such an arduous undertaking, my heart was with these guys and I was following their adventures from the beginning of the ride to the end via their blogs.

An early bird setting up his tent.  As I recall this was quite a victory in this man's life as he had had to leave the tour earlier due to heart problems and had recovered significantly enough to rejoin the tour.  Cool, eh?

And this was just the start of my celebration last year.

We then went to a local fast food Mexican place in our area and bought take out Mexican food to enjoy at home.  While there, my daughter and grands explored the back yard.  Just prior to my birthday, we'd had several bad windstorms and the privacy fence between our yard and our neighbour's up close to the house had been blown down resulting in a pile of boards to be inspected by curious grands and daughter.

Also to be written on by one very mischievous daughter - with help from her daughter.

And then there was my garden.  The Rose of Sharon was in bloom (it's not this year as we had such a late spring).

Smiling at me in all their glory as if to say "Happy Birthday".  We're glad you've survived another year.

The black-eyed Susans which, in and of themselves almost make an outdoor, living bouquet blooming in profusion where they're planted.

But that wasn't the end of the day.  We decided on the spur of the moment to have a laid back, low key birthday party in the park bringing in food from a favourite take-off which specializes in Southern barbecue at its best.  Because frankly I wasn't up to anything else, so my family determined to make my day a celebration even with my various limitations.

It turns out that my birthday was a special day for other people as well.  Me and my camera.  I could not resist taking a picture of this bride and groom as they were having their wedding pictures taken in the park.

And, of course, there were the gardens in the park in full bloom.  Beautifully landscaped.  It seemed to me that day that they were there for my pleasure.  To soothe my battered soul.

Whatever....  I did enjoy them though.

And then the family started to show up.

Hubby, daughter, the grands, son-in-love,  and his parents.  All there just because they value me.  Just because they wanted to celebrate this special day with me.  Just because ....

I felt loved....

Bonus!  They even bought and brought an ice cream cake to the park to make the perfect ending of a good day.  How they kept it from melting is a well-kept secret.

Unfortunately, the party ended very early as the fatigue was in full force that summer and I became too tired to sit up.  I guess that when the birthday girl has to leave, the party's over.

But it was good while it lasted.

Very good.

*******

I chose to remember last year's birthday in this blog rather than the most recent one two days ago, because it was another milestone on my road to recovery.  The realization that life - and enjoyment of life - is not over just because a person is still in the process of recovery.  Life can still be good.  Full of challenges, yet still good.  Different - yet still good.

As I look back on this year a year ago, I realize what is most important to me at this stage in my recovery. 

My family.

Because they're the ones who are in it for the long haul.

May God bless them richly.

Until tomorrow ... where we'll see where the deranged mind rambles next.