A birthday

 It is/was my birthday today and I have had a very lovely time.  You may remember that last year Ash's nod to the day was to look at the date on the clock, say 'oh, it's your birthday today' and that was it.  This year brought with it even less response than that.  He didn't notice the cards or the presents which were dotted around and showed no interest in where I was going this afternoon except to say that he didn't want to come and being slightly grumpy when I got home but, unlike last year, I found I wasn't sad at all.  

You'll probably know by now that, as a family, we always made the most of special days.  Birthdays, wedding anniversaries, Valentine's Day, Christmas, all of those were a cause for celebration.  Presents were always a surprise and laughter was always part of the celebration so, when dementia came calling and Ash started to lose interest, I wasn't quite sure what to do.  

Of course I mentioned my quandary here and one particular response stuck with me.  A lady who'd been following the blog for a while said that she now treated herself as her husband would once have treated her and that stuck with me.  I needed to do something to lift those days out of the mundane even if it was just to avoid the temptation to sit and feel sorry for myself.

Last year's treat then was the car.  It was a big birthday so that was one reason but also it really was something Ash might have done.  Years and years ago I came home from work one day to find a white Ford Escort Cabriolet parked outside the front door with a note stuck to the windscreen written by Ash and with the words 'It's taxed, it's insured and it's yours'.  A car for my 60th birthday then wouldn't have been unheard of.

But the car was last year and this birthday called for something different.   I thought and thought but couldn't come up with anything until I happened to see a large framed photo which I'd been admiring for a couple of years at least.  I'd seen it more than once but had never thought of buying it because it was a little on the expensive side and I didn't think I could justify it.  Now however I saw that it really would be the perfect birthday present so I ordered it and collected it this afternoon.  I plan to put it up on my bedroom wall and it will be the first thing I see every morning when I wake up so how perfect is that.

If you're wondering about the photo just click on this link and you'll see what I'm talking about.  https://www.ianmoorephotography.com/landscape/abzd1n5552bg5tlkzxsg9nv1f7b2li 

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