June 27, 2010

Kitties, jobs, and little people.

Been a tough week in Chatsworth. Simone, the tortoise shell tabby cat, has been sick.  Last Sunday, she just laid around, barely lifting her head, not talking, hardly eating or drinking, and not jumping up onto my lap.  One vet visit, lots of lab tests, four different meds, and a lot of money later, she seemed to be feeling better.  Then, a nasty infection grew on her back, exploded, and there were more meds, more money, and an even better feeling cat.  Such a scare, especially after losing her best friend, the poodle Buddy, only one month ago.  Whew, if I can survive feeding three pills and two droppers full of medication twice a day to a feline, plus washing the boo-boo, we will both be fine.  Nice to hear her purring and "talking" once again.

Still, I've been a bit under the weather, emotionally.  It's hard to do the job at work of three people, work for unhappy employers, take care of cranky sick people, and try to keep my staff from quitting. A sick  Really, it's exhausting and that kind of emotional exhaustion makes me want to burrow inside of myself and do whatever it takes to stop feeling bad, be it carbs or a little wine or too much TV. And I find myself not having the energy or desire to be sociable, even though I know it's really the best remedy.

So thank goodness for happy, silly grandchildren.  I had the company of the little ones yesterday, and listening to their giggles was salve for the weary soul.  The little boy comes up with facts out of the blue, such as "Ice has no friction" and the little girl goes on in a voice that sounds so grown-up as she discusses protecting a classmate from bullies, "Well, you know, Gramma, that my friend is verrrrry little and verrrry quiet and sometimes the bad boys make fun of her and I just go up to them and tell them that it's just not nice to do that to her."  Ah, the innocence of youth, how they see things so simply, how they are so brave, and how much pleasure they get from something like jumping in my pool or making a tiny village out of assorted castles and legos and play animals.  Such a blessing to have them in my life.

So what's the message here?  That life is tough.  And that I may not have a lot of money and may not be happy at work and I may be be pretty worn down lately, but that I'm really blessed to have things, or people, in my life that make me smile and be happy.  And that all the tough stuff in life is forgotten after even a few minutes of that kind of joy.