Hillary

Today I treated myself to a massage. I have no specific aches or pains--just the creakiness of getting older. What a luxury!

The sports massage person I visit lives in Bangor, so I took the opportunity to call in to see Hillary, former owner of my house. The poor thing had a bad fall in January. After walking 25 minutes from her sister’s house to hers, she apparently lost consciousness and fell forward on the lane leading to her house, leading to a concussion, stitches on her head, and bruised ribs. She has suffered from vertigo for many years and has had other bad spells involving balance and nausea. But never a black out. As a result, she’s giving up her car and she’s much less social because she’s somewhat isolated where she lives. She hates asking people for help, but would be better off if she let people help her--she’d be less isolated.

Hillary’s always been a sturdy person--walking miles to visit someone or have a coffee or just enjoy the coastal path that runs along side her back garden. It’s hard for her to get her head around the idea of being infirm and very cautious about her movements. It was so sad to hear her say things like: "I’ve had a good life, I had a happy marriage, I’ve been healthy up until now..."

She just turned 80. On the bright side, she bought her house because it has an amazing view of Belfast Lough. I watched sailboats and fishing boats come and go as I spoke with her. I imagine if I visit in a few months time, she’ll be walking without support and feeling more her old self.

It does scare me how quickly things can change for someone and how nonlinear the ageing process is. And so I enjoy running and swimming and golfing while I can.
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