The morning after the day before

I just had to write to thank so many of you that came to Dave's thanksgiving service yesterday, and to others that I know were not able to make it.

I think it was a day he would have enjoyed . We had a quiet reflective gathering at the crematorium in the morning for just the family.We had chosen Westerleigh which is a beautiful country setting - If it had had a few mountains around it would have been a perfect .
This was followed by a great family lunch ,and from there on to the larger thanksgiving.

Looking around at the congregation was like a patchwork of our lives.Some dated back to our university years and nearly every stage in between .The tone of the service was of thankfulness to God which I know he would have approved of rather than focussing on him.

My only regret was that I was not able to talk to more of you.I am soooo sorry to those of you I missed especially to those I know had come a distance.I hope gradually to be able to connect by either phone , e-mail , facebook , or even face to face .

So this will probably be the last blog on this site as I now have to set out on my journey without Dave who was my best travelling companion and taught me so much along the way.
I am just grateful that the ' journeying together' has just gone from a 3-some to a 2-some and that I am not alone.

I have to say a huge thank you to you all who have travelled with us and I know will continue with me. God never expected us to make it on our own we all need each other.

So thank you , and may each of you know in a deeper way the God Dave loved and served,and receive the blessing that brings.

With my love to you all .
Elaine

Jouney's end and journey's beginning

This title refers to the fact that Dave's long journey came to an end last night at about quarter to eleven.I was able to hold his hand to the last and he slipped away peacefully after a few difficult days.So he is now with His heavenly Father released from the diseased body he has had to inhabit for the last 18 months.

We ,as a family, are now embarking on a new journey.By tomorrow all our immediate family will be back.Mim Besi and Jonathan fly in tonight from Albania with Steve yet again chauffeuring them up from Gatwick,Peter,Ruth and Theoni, joined us this morning from Southampton and Ruth ,Maki and Amelia were already here.

The Thanksgiving service will be at Cairns Road Baptist Church at 3pm Tuesday 29 June. All very welcome with tea and cake after.
We are wanting to thank God for Dave's life and His presence with us through this journey.There will be a period of 'open mic' during the service if you have anything you wish to share publicly.There will also be a loose leaf file to add any photos or prewritten memories that you would like to share with our family.
Please dress brightly .

I will close there for now but may add further details as the days pass.

A hugh thank you to all those who have journeyed with us ,it would have been a desperate road to travel alone.
We hope to see you all next week.
Elaine

Life ( and Death) is a Rollercoaster

Another long silence from us -sorry.

It is now 7 weeks since we had a home visit from a hospice doctor , in whose opinion Dave probably had 2 more weeks of earthly life left.

I say that only to illustrate how over the last few weeks we feel we have imminently been reaching the finishing tape only to find we are still running the race.

Dave has not really been eating for some while now and so has become weaker and has been bed bound for 2 weeks.Pain and nausea are well controlled by means of a syringe driver which releases the necessary drugs slowly over a 24 hour period.

Last Monday we had a 'gift ' of a day when Dave was able to communicate clearly and normally but since then he has slipped and is now sleeping all the time.

We have been greatly blessed by all the supportive district nurses and also over the last 2 weeks by Marie Curie night carers allowing me to have a good night's sleep.

Last week end we had all the UK based family here for a double birthday barbeque (Pete and Maki) which was great. Ian ,Dave's twin brother has been visiting the last fortnight which has also been a blessing.

So the journey has continued but must surely be reaching the end.But we know it is not the terminus for Dave merely a junction at which to change trains.

Thanks you all again for your concern for us ,your support, cards, prayers, cakes and flowers. We have felt such a wealth of friends behind us in this journey.

We also thank God for truly being Emmanuel -God with us -on this journey. There have been times I have lost sight of Him but I know even then He has been here and come to restore peace again.

I will use this site to bring further news and also notification of funeral/thanksgiving services.

With my love and gratitude,

Elaine

There is peace in the valley

This line of a hymn is somewhere in the far recesses of my memory but surfaced this morning in my thoughts.(Perhaps someone can enlighten me more )

This week things have changed for us and I wanted you, our supporters to be aware of where we are.

During last week between the 2 hospital appointments ,when a stent or colostomy were being considered to relieve some of Dave's symtoms , he deteriorated such that by the consultant appt on Friday it was not feasible.
Over the bank holiday week end he became weaker and is now eating very little .A visit from the hospice doctor on Thursday brought better pain relief.

So I return to my opening line -we do feel like we are walking through the valley of the shadow of death -but we fear no evil for we know that our Good Shepherd is with us ( references to Psalm 23)-so we have found peace in the valley.

It was with joy that Peter and Ruth were able to visit this week to bring our latest granddaughter to see us.All of them are thriving which is great.

So the circle of life continues.

We remain grateful for all your continuing prayers for us as a family

It's a girl !

Thank you faithful readers for hanging in there with us during this long silence.

The truth was that I was awaiting the arrival of Peter and Ruth's baby .She arrived this morning and we thank God for her safe debut into the world .Mum and daughter (and Dad) are all well .No name as yet as they had been told to expect a son! so it's back to square 1 with name .

Mim and Besi returned to Albania at the end of March when Jonathan was 11 days old. They are doing well and Jonathan is growing at a rate.Thank God for Skype and other technologies even though it frustrates me at times that I lack mastery of such gadgets.

Dave has had a difficult few weeks with intermittent backache and discomfort in his gut.
This has meant disturbed nights and no pleasure in eating .
We are due to see the original consultant, who diagnosed the tumour in December '08, on Friday with hope that she may be able to bring Dave some relief.

We have been greatly blessed by visits from our church family at Cairns and also from old friends ( perhaps 'long standing' would be a kinder adjective!) ,who have taken time to come and pray with us.
In prayer last evening we were reminded that in Psalms 23 we are promised that 'even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death we fear no evil for God is with us ' The thought being that it is only the shadow of death as we have the promise of eternal life which continues .
For those of you that pray for us please join with us in thanking God for our journey thus far ,for the arrival of our grandchildren .We need wisdom for up coming decisions on possible treatment and grace for each day .

Waiting well??

Much has happened, but my own health remains static and sluggish. This a rare foray to the PC. I'm now officially retired from Bristol City Council, but had the opportunity last week to visit some of them for a final presention. I spoke of my 20 years with them, remembering the fulfilments, but admitting to the frustrations, and the hope that the latter did not cloud their memories of our times together.
This week has brought the good news of a UK settlement visa for Maki, ( he flies back to UK next Wednesday).
And then last night, the safe arrival of our first grandson, Jonathan Gorrea weighing in at 9lbs - all well and due home later today. They plan swift application for passport, still aiming for return to Albania by Easter.
So life goes on, even if my own part seems that of bystander. Waiting has its rewards. Lord, may I wait patiently for you.

Plateau Living

Again you may be wondering what is going on with us as it is so long since our last blog. No news usually means that not much is happening and indeed that is the case.

Since the last episode of pneumonia it was recommended by the hospice dooctor that Dave should have a 2 week course of steroids then go onto a half dose.
This has produced a stable health for Dave.
We also had people come in and pray for us and we feel since then Dave has felt a little better. In our continuing journey our faith remains strong.
So what does our day look like. Dave spends the morning in bed, then transfers to the hospital bed we now have in the back bedroom(good for bird watching in the garden) then at tea time moves downstairs to lie on the sofa for the evening.
We still manage to get to church on Sunday as Dave can lie out on the back row. So life is enclosed in a relatively small world and we value visitors to bring the world in to us, as long as they realise Dave usually takes a listening role.

We may seem static but the rest of the family are not. Miriam arrived safely, retrieved from Gatwick by Steve. We are expecting Besi to arrive in UK this Thursday and after Steve's birthday bash -a karting night, they will arrive with us on Saturday.

Ruth Maki and Amelia moved into their borrowed flat on Feb 1. It is a great blessing and perfect for their needs. Maki had hoped to be able to sort his settlement visa out from this end but found out this was not possible and has had to return to Albania and is not expected back 'til early March. Please pray that his visa will be processed quickly and smoothly and also for the family in this critical time of separation.

We have also had a couple of visits from Peter and Ruth which has been good .Their first baby is due mid April.

So thank you again for your concern and prayers .We feel we are on somewhat of a plateau healthwise and also that we are in a season of waiting .

PS the post office delivered an empty envelope during the first week of Feb. If you sent us a square shaped missive at that time ( ?female writing .Bristol postmark) we have not received it please contact us.