Seen on TV

A tribe of Aboriginal people, very young to very old, meet in desert country to celebrate their lives and their culture. They sing tribal songs together and cherish friendships.

They remember when the big atom bombs decimated their numbers, but they have learned to be patient with the ways of the white and continue to flourish in dreadful circumstances.



This refers to atomic bomb tests at Maralinga, central Australia in 1953. 

Sunday

Today is a day for bed. Levi is the first to arrive, snuggling up to me while I enjoy my breakfast of muesli and sliced bananas.

Fifteen minutes later Freya leaps on the bed, looks around and settles in her own space.

Consultation

Saturday morning — the surgery has been quiet over the last two hours. A trickle of patients leaves the waiting room. By 10.30 we are alone and the call comes from a young, attractive doctor near the entrance. I answer questions and Rosemary fills in the gaps. 

We leave, and Rosemary drops off a sample of urine I took at home to the lab across the road, and a new script from the doc to the pharmacy.

Pain

The pain in my legs has largely gone away. A mystery! Unless God has at last adhered to my wishes!

New bra

She strides into the bedroom, pulling on her new bra.

'I love my new bra,' she spruiks, tugging it into place.

Over breakfast

Freya and Levi lie on the bed, occasionally turning over.

When Rosemary comes in with my breakfast, I ask how she is.

'And what about you?' she asks me.

'Sore,' I say. 'Very sore.'

My companion

My blue wheely walker sits by the wall awaiting my attention, its empty cage hanging.