TRUE NORTH

A northerly breeze blowing down Port Phillip Bay generally bears down bringing warmth and flat water (and plenty of pesky jet skiers); attributes that offset the shifty conditions and correlating mental strain brought to bear upon the sailor. The Southerly brings with it a colder yet more steady flow of wind and waves. In summer, it’s like an old friend, showing up at the same time each day, caressing with relative stability, predictability and forgiveness when erroneous tactical decisions are made. Westerly breezes whilst enticing the…

2 Comments

Dem Bones, Dat Brain

  Positive energy is infectious. My Physiotherapist is an expert in this area. I find myself increasingly interested in all manner of anatomical and musculoskeletal theories, practices and developments due to his effervescent imparting of knowledge on what goes far beyond just the general treatment of my uncooperative body. The ‘structural’ secret to my recovery lies within a muscular web which both pains me and sustains me. It’s my adductor longis which doesn’t want to yield. The gracilis and pectinius are all “on guard” after the…

4 Comments

Whistle While You Work

I’ve taken to whistling. “Just whistle while you work And cheerfully together we can tidy up the place So hum a merry tune It won't take long when there's a song to help you set the pace And as you sweep the room Imagine that the broom is someone that you love And soon you'll find you're dancing to the tune When hearts are high the time will fly So whistle while you work.”  (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs) “Cheerfully tidying up the place”, “Hum…

4 Comments

Sweet Oblivious Antidote

Macbeth: How does your patient, doctor? Doctor: Not so sick, my lord, as she is troubled with thick-coming fancies that keep her from rest. Macbeth: Cure her of that! Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased, pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow, raze out the written troubles of the brain, and with some sweet oblivious antidote cleanse the stuffed bosom of that perilous stuff which weighs upon her heart. Doctor: Therein the patient must minister to himself.              …

Comments Off on Sweet Oblivious Antidote

a2+b2=?

My family enjoy mathematics. In fact, my husband when once preparing to teach trigonometry to his class super excitedly shared his enthusiasm for a YouTube clip of the Will Smith rip off, 'Getting Triggy With It", which remains to this day a family ‘favourite’. (It's worth checking out if you want a funky way to learn Trigonometry! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2uPYYLH4Zo) The thing with equations is that they are supposed to balance. One side needs to equal the other. Otherwise we spend our time forensically researching where we have gone…

2 Comments

Screaming Kindness

I’m convinced that the management principles of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma and Total Quality Management were discovered by people forced to spend months on crutches. It is crystal clear to me now, after spending years in management discussing this stuff, that there is no other explanation as to the origins of these theories. Only someone not fully abled would devise such in-depth concepts around time and motion, process improvement and waste minimization. I have become a black belt in the art. Life is slow, but full…

1 Comment

New Glasses Required

Beyond the reflection of gratitude, the demand for a response to one’s trials invariably rears its head. “How do you do it”? “As an active person, this must be so hard for you”. “You must be so frustrated”. “This will be driving you crazy”. “You're going to need drugs to get you through this!”. “A fractured pelvis & hip, that’s nothing to be smiling about”. An ongoing string of well-meaning, sympathy bearing comments from people expressing support. Despite these considerations a quiet and constant melody, frequently pushes…

Comments Off on New Glasses Required

Foot Washing Friends

Q: What do you get if you cross a shaving blade, a bucket of water, luxurious soap and the most precious ingredient - a wonderful friend? Other than beautifully smooth legs and clean feet? An overwhelming sense of helplessness, thankfulness and humility. The foot washing, leg shaving imagery reflects the entire emotional readjustment required from being a fully independent, capable, active, decisive individual to a recipient of other people’s generosity and acts of kindness; the likes of which you were not expecting to need until you…

3 Comments

A Positive Rub

  “The power of association”, “ You are what you eat.” Mantras steely imbedded in my operating system. Crutching around our house I pause to wonder if this also applies to innate objects that we brush up against or subconsciously consider? Since June last year, one of the first things I walk past each morning is a beautifully bound version of “Les Miserables”. The Wretched. Has this been a subtlety I have missed? Should I have moved this book, perhaps hidden it? Shunned its generous giver…

1 Comment

Small Heart, Big Gratitude

  When a best friend gives you a card after a serious accident that says “Sometimes simply by sitting, the soul collects wisdom”…. You can decide to vehemently reject the whole notion of sitting quietly and continue with an oxen determination to avoid any form of reflection and quiet, or to open your pores to the Zen master’s intention of the proverb and literally just start on your way. Even before I ended up with a multiple fractured pelvis sustained from pursuing the sport I have loved…

8 Comments