Welcome. Come on in for a cup of tea or coffee. You are very welcome and I have most beverages. Today I want to tell you the secret I have been keeping the last month that I would have loved to share but couldn’t risk it in case my Mum happened to read my blog.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you that my Mum turned 90 on Thursday. For each of her special birthdays from 50 onwards I have always organised a party and special cards but what could I do this year for a woman that is not a party person (unless it is with her close friends) when all these friends live in Sydney where Mum lived until six years ago when she moved up here. I could organise a party with the many people she has met since being up here but none have replaced those special friendships that she forged so long ago.
Sadly her two longest friends (one from her primary school days and the other from high school) are mentally not in a position that they can travel. Her primary school friend however, rang her on three consecutive days to wish her a happy birthday. That is some bond they have formed that Mum’s birthday is still remembered when most else has been forgotten. I did invite two of her marginally younger friends to come up from Sydney and share the celebrations with us. My big quanderry was what should I do – should I tell her that they were coming and give her the joy of anticipating for a month beforehand. At 90 you don’t have that much to look forward to. And what if the unmentionable happened – she wouldn’t have known that her friends loved her and were coming. Would the shock kill her – she has an enlarged heart – would it be too much to take. Or should it be a surprise. I love surprises and it won out. It was hard though as three times in this period she said to me that her regret was that she wasn’t well enough to make the trip to Sydney and celebrate with her girlfriends. I bit my tongue.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you that it was worth it. Her surprise was immense and her joy indescribable.
© irene waters 2018
They arrived the day before her birthday just on lunch which we shared in Mum’s communal dining room. Then they chatted for the afternoon before coming to our place for dinner.
© irene waters 2018
The next day on her birthday we went to Sails, a good restaurant on Main Beach Noosa. The weather was perfect.
© irene waters 2018
This was our view.
© irene waters 2018
The restaurant treated Mum like a Queen and went that extra yard to make the occasion even more special.
© irene waters 2018
Mum was animated and chatting happily.
© irene waters 2018
Blowing her candle out (lucky there weren’t 90 of them as she wouldn’t have had a hope.)
© irene waters 2018
Only roger was strong enough willed to forgo desert.
© irene waters 2018
After lunch we dropped Roger off and the ladies went to the Regional Art Gallery. An interesting exhibition on camouflage. They had tea with Mum and then on Friday Mum and I drove them down to the airport for their return home. Where she had been expecting nothing her birthday turned into one that was very special. A blogging friend Sharon Bonin-Pratt wrote a post in December last year about what can we give the person who has everything and she came up with some very good suggestions. One of these was spend time with the person – and my Mum’s friends were the best birthday present she could have received – their time.
Now I think I have taken enough of your time – over to you. Have you read any good books or seen any films that should be seen? Looking forward to seeing how your week has been. Thank you for dropping in for coffee, it is lovely to see you. Thanks to eclecticali who is our host of the weekend coffee share.
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 