beaching ~ the rhythm of the waves

I have been embracing my time here and the slow quiet days listening to the rhythmic sound of the breaking waves; it has been something akin to a retreat, which in hindsight we both needed. Our days have been interspersed with hard physical work too in the garden (but only as hard as my back allows, though it has stood up to the constant bending and stetching quite well – there is hope on the horizon it may be going in a positive direction).

It is only when I am away from a situation that I can appreciate the fact that my life has become far removed from any natural daily rhythm and I often feel that I have just got through a day rather than enjoyed it and in turn this becomes quite unsettling and I feel rather out of step with the world.

Changes, I think, need to be made.

Away from the hussle and bustle and demands of daily life back at home I have been able to spend time just thinking. Seeing life from a different angle and pondering on what changes might prove useful. Having time just to sit and be is as hard as it is rewarding.

During our time here there has been plenty of nurturing food – homemade soups, bean stew and lentil curry – we are still enjoying warming foods and not quite ready yet for the start of the salad season. So even though an odd biscuit may have slipped into my hand at elevenses, generally our diet has been good but I am still niggled with one or two health problems – sleep (too much at the wrong times) and a lack of vitality. In other words I seem to be lacking well-being rather than having any major illness.

During our downtime I have been listening to podcasts, mainly interviews with leading UK consultants and GP’s who are passionately trying to convey their take on well-being which is now backed up by science. It is heartening to know there are so many small changes we can make for ourselves to keep healthier, and equally disheartening that many GP’s still just want to offer the quick fix pill that will only relieve the symptoms and not investigate the cause.

Anyway, I have learnt a lot and as I am fast approaching seventy which I see as a kind of threshold when the illnesses of older age can take hold and from which there is no return, I want to do all I can to delay such health problems from creeping in. There is no doubt that once you hit 65 many of our bodily functions struggle more – we lose muscle tone and muscle, our energy seems to deplete rapidly, bending stretching and balance becomes more difficult and we may start to suffer with hearing and vision impairment, high blood pressue and so much more.

I am already planning on implementing some of the suggestions from the podcasts which I will share with you as I go along. Some may prove beneficial others not so.

Today we will have the pleasure of a visit from the ‘tree people’ contracted to Scottish Power who take care of the power lines and make sure that no tree branches are in the way. Such a visit will always guarantee a rise in my blood pressure as it is never an easy time with them; rather than dealing with professional tree surgeons we find that they just prefer to get out their chain saws and get on with the job cutting off limbs here and there as they think best and leave you with a very misshapen tree and a pile of shredding! We always have the ‘is it really necessary’ conversation to try and preserve what we can but in the end these people want to hack off as much as possible so they don’t have to have so many return visits.

Having a piece of woodland is not as wonderful as I once thought.