HANGING OUT WITH FAMILY - AND HAVING A LAUGH

What is she doing up there, you might ask?

My partner and me made one of our regular sojourns to see my dear mother, who, with her increasing years, continue to be physically diminished by the impact of time and space. Sad as this state of affairs is, it is also one which humans must expect and accept, as we have no control over the process of ageing, beyond that of deliberately calling time on ourselves.

On today's visit we found Mum to be reasonably well, all things considered. She continues to look frail, and losing her body tone, as her muscles weaken. Notwithstanding this, she still ambles about  her immaculately kept apartment, doing bits and pieces, as it were, such as a little laundering, hanging out and putting away what she has washed.  Having her own home, Mum is able to maintain as much of her independence as her body, mobility and health will allow her to exercise, with her main discomfort coming from her arthritic pains and longstanding problematic, and, at times very distressing coughing.


As we were going to be spending several hours with Mum, I prepared some lunch for her and begin to cook some dinner - soup made with lamb and split yellow peas, green bananas, yam, yellow sweet potatoes, green peppers, tomatoes, Spring onion -Skellion - and carrots - for her.

While dinner was being cooked, our Mum and my partner and me were joined by my brother and his wife.


As Mum's dinner cooked, we gathered with her in her living room to chat and have a laugh, as we are wont to do on these visits. Having gotten over her frequent and spontaneous mad laughter at the mention of 'Coco Loco', or, is it, 'Loco Coco', in reference to a known brand of coconut water - yes, the same thing that, according to Harry Belafonte, in his song, "Coconut Woman" is "good for your daughter." No mention about for your son, though - which we tend to question which way around the name really is.

And, as we chatted and half watched - yes, we are all accomplished multi-taskers - a TV programme, we some how got onto the subject of how debilitating hayfever can be. With my Sil citing how terrible hers was, until she sort of grew out of it, to the point where it is not nearly as problematic as it used to be. In response, I commented on the fact that I have found it helpful washing my face with cold water when I have been suffering badly with hayfever, as this tends to cool my face and eyes down. 

My SIL commented that such action would not have helped her, which seemed to have elicited an enigmatic response from her husband; namely that the cure for hayfever was to eat good dumplings.

Yes,you can probably imagine our sense of puzzlement; how can 'dumplings', made of flour and water, with a little salt added, be a cure for hayfever?  

Not surprisingly, probably, I surmise that it could only become a cure, if the intention is that it should choke the unfortunate hayfever victim to death.  whereupon we began our hysterical laughter, in the process commenting on how we would market this '100 per cent guaranteed cure for hayfever, as a family business. It might seem morbid, but we all laughed until water came to our eyes - again, consider Harry Belafonte's song, "Come Back Liza" - and I found myself having to warn my relatives of the not entirely unlikely risk of one of us laughing until we choke and die.  

Yes, it does seem almost inexplicable that all 4 of us - our mother, on reflection, surprisingly, did not join in our mad laughter. Further indication,probably, that my partner and my brother and SIL are, or were, as mad as hatters, in that we should have found 'the joke about dumplings being a marketable cure for hayfever, by way of death', so hilariously funny.

Laughter is good for the body and the ergo sum; endeavour to see the 'funny side' of things and have some good laughs regularly and stay healthy.

Or, is this guy a 'show-off' or something, where is his clothes?