MONDAY 13 FEB 2023 1040HRSgmt

 

 

 

So, this scene has been carefully dusted and wrapped in acid-free tissue paper since the morning of 3 February 2023 and I am quite missing it. Paul is happily engaged in a hunt for the camels and one of the angels that match, he has nearly a year to find both or either - the main search is for one of the angels. The original full set came with two angels, one 'in-flight' holding a Gloria banner and the other kneeling in adoration. It would be hoping for too much to find both but one is not outside the realm of possibility. 

 

Lent is fast approaching - 22 Feb is Ash Wednesday this year. The night before I'll be stripping the mantel of the winter decorations leaving only the empty glass domes, the mantel clock, and speaker (which I have been waiting for more than a year to be mounted on the wall!). Paul says these mantel decor schemes make it meaningful to him, he said Saturday night (during a rare joint telly watching - Neil Oliver's splendid Saturday night slot on GB News) seeing the displays makes him think, including the stripped mantel during Lent. As we grow older and simultaneously yet more dismayed at the direction geopolitical and societal events  are turning, faith is ever more important to us both. 

 

When Paul and I were first together, he had a bit of difficulty keeping his agnosticism to himself - eye rolls and deep sighs when I'd be reading Daily Office or saying the Rosary. But over the years he's asked questions, discussed beliefs and customs, participated in things like setting up the Advent Wreath and Nativity scene. When I won the vintage Fontanini set on eBay and it was delivered on the morning of the Epiphany, he was as pleased as I was and helped arrange the display including testing the illuminated Star of Bethlehem. When I put the tissue wrap and sturdy box on the side table ready to take the scene down, he wanted to know more about the significance of the 2 February date (the Presentation of the Infant in the Temple). 

 

Not bad for an Aspie raised by dour Wee Free-Presbyterian mum and maternal grandparents. Growing up in a home where joy was considered bad manners left marks, marrying me late-in-life has been a revelation to him, he says. LOL, now he's disappointed if his stocking isn't bulging with fruits, sweets, and silly desk toys (although the colouring-in books and fresh sets of Crayola crayons never impressed him so I gave up on that years ago). 

 

Valentine's Day is another revelation to him - he wanted to know the religious story behind St Valentine but he also now enjoys the flowers, chocolates, and a nice meal. Honestly the man gets as much pleasure bringing home the flowers and box of chocolates as I get from having him do so. We don't do cards or romantic gifts (we don't for our anniversary, either - but woe betide if there isn't a special meal 17th January!) but we do celebrate the day. 

 

Same for birthdays, btw. He has progressed to the point of remembering not only our birthdays but Fox's family days as well and reminds me to send a 'money-gram' on their special days. He was over the moon about the eldest graduating from high school last spring, and equally over the moon about the youngest's first birthday. He even remembers 'his' daughter-in-law's birthday. He doesn't call Fox his step-son nowadays, he calls Fox his son, and the boys are his grandsons. 

 

All of which eases the worries current events are causing, the greatest being Putin's insanity - how far will it extend and can we make it through anything he throws at us? I find myself constantly checking, rechecking, checking and checking everything prepared not only for possible war but also the mess the UK (and God help us, that lunatic Sturgeon down in Edinburgh) so-called government is making. 

 

It's not really a joke to wonder 'how fast can I crochet and quilt more blankets' when we're keeping the heating turned down even on the coldest days - the skyrocket electric and natural gas costs are truly horrific. Paul isn't laughing when I fret we've used too much of the stored BBQ charcoal and he isn't laughing anymore about my eBay win of a wash tub and mangle I can set over a campfire to do washing. He was brought up much the same as I was and understands 'things' are now at a point preparedness is wise on two counts, one the stocked items being extremely helpful and two the peace of mind that comes with knowing we've done what we can, just in case. He's becoming very good at remembering to put something on the fridge posted list if he uses the penultimate tin/loaf/battery/bandage...I rotate stocks but cannot manage without the list being kept up to date.

 

I think about my dad raising us off-grid (until the county came in with a court order, capped our artesian well and forced us onto county power and water) and how valuable the lessons from those days are now. One cauldron for laundry, one for the weekly chicken slaughter, and one for candle dipping. The Singer sewing machines (one 99K hand-crank table top model and the other a treadle), kitchen garden, the 'make do and mend' ethos that got my grandparents comfortably through two World Wars and The Great Depression, and my childhood family well off enough to support a comfortable life as well. 

 

Lessons I think - I fear - will come in handy sooner rather than later.