Life!

Well, here I am at last! I know it has been a long time since January, but my excuse is… life. Particularly a direct threat to it, or a threat to it as it was. It has been a… eerrrr… challenging past two years.

A bit cryptic? You asked for it…well, I imagine you did, which for me is the same thing. I write this to remind you that if your favourite author, whoever she/he/they might be, hasn’t brought out anything recently, in fact if anyone in your life hasn’t been in touch recently, the answer is…Life. Send up a prayer for them, or just a kind thought will do.

It is a long story, parts of which are covered in more depth in past posts which you go back and check if you’re interested. It is a bit of a downer, but ends well…sort of. You can skip to the end and read the more interesting writing news, if you like.

It started July 2021, when I contracted Covid. It knocked me about a bit, but I recovered fairly well except for the Post-Covid lethargy. No thing I couldn’t handle. I am known for being disgustingly healthy, but the lethargy persisted accompanied by fussy thinking.

At the end of that year, my darling sister passed suddenly. I miss her terribly. Apart from being a great sister, as an author herself, she was my sounding board and my inspiration to keep at this writing thing. Sadly, it was just as she was getting some traction on the net that she became ill and died shortly thereafter; leaving all who love her shell-shocked. You can find her romance books here, Caille Berkham and her Y.A. novels here Dale Furse.

Next, the bank kept upping the mortgage fees, and I was still plagued by bouts of deep fatigue. My garden was no longer a priority and it became a wilderness. The very thought of trying to control it overwhelmed me. It increasingly became a problem to make ends meet. I entered into discussions with No. 2 daughter, the only one living close by, to move in with her. I was devastated. I loved my little shack at the beach. I had great plans for when I became a literary success! Alas, those dreams turned to ashes. But could be worse, right?

A bright spot here! My self-portrait ‘Glitch” won 2nd prize at the Burdekin Art Comp/Exhibition. Yaah! See this post. There’s a poem involved.

THEN…Early 2023, I found the dreaded lump!! No, not in my breast; in my abdomen…and it wasn’t just a little one. Tracing with my fingers I estimated it to be 5 – 6 cm (2 – 3 inches) long and 2.5 cm (1 inch) or more across. Where the hell did that come from? I had no symptoms or signs. I was a bit weary, which I put down to to the lingering effects of Covid. I went to my doctor, who thankfully took action. Along with the horror of the diagnosis (malignant tumour, SURPRISE!) was the wretched business of letting all my family and friends know.

I was put into the care of a most wonderful Colo-rectal Surgeon, who could not have been kinder and more generous with his time. I truly owe him my life. Because, I rapidly started to deteriorate, the op was brought forward and done almost immediately.

Hallelujah! I am now minus that invasive lump plus half of my small bowel. Thankfully it was fully excised and I didn’t require a stoma. I am one of the lucky ones…my No. 2 Brother died while I was recovering and unable to attend his funeral. His cancer was in his brain.

This was followed by another positive highlight — my painting, ‘Birds, Birds, Birds’, birds won People’s Choice at Balgal Beache’s Art Exhibition in August 2022. (It previously won 1st prize at the NQ Pineapple Festival), and ‘Garma Warrior‘ was runner-up.

The operation wounds have healed and I am extremely well. Almost back to the me I remember.

However, the housing situation got worse. It was a case of; do I eat or pay the bills? So, from my recovery bed at my daughter’s house I moved back home to pack up. Actually I did very little packing; that’s what Removalists are for, right? What a wrench to leave my home and all my friends and acquaintances…but lovely to be surrounded by loving family.

A really big highlight…My daughter, the one here in Townsville, is pregnant. Baby due in February. Her new partner is a very happy man. Now, the pressure is on.

We’ve moved into a new house. I’m living downstairs and Daughter, partner and two kids are squeezed in upstairs until the shed is converted. Things are working quite well, I am designing the interior of said shed, and have done many iterations until settling on the present one. Have also designed the kitchen. Now, that I enjoyed. I love cooking.

So, my friends, here I am. Trying to get back into the swing of things. Just 5 years to wait for the final all clear.

On the writing front there are 3 things of note:

I, Rosa Christian, have written a prose poetry chap book, ‘Bearding the Dragon : A tale of my tussle with the cancer dragon.’ I’m thinking I will put it here as a series. It is quite quirky, amusing, moving and hopefully sharing and supportive for others. I’ll be interested to hear what others think of it. My writers’ group tell me it’s OK.

My Percy Rose alias has brought out the 3rd in her murder mystery series.

Rosie O’Grady has not been entirely slack You can read her news here… if she ever gets her lazy self into gear.

If you are a reader and ever wonder why your favourite author, whoever she/he is hasn’t put out anything for awhile…There you have it…Life happens.!

Hoping yours isn’t so fraught as the above. I’ll get to proper writing soon. Oh! I did write a few pages of prose poetry about the invasion and will be releasing it in series form once I’ve shown my surgeon.

So, ciao for now,