Rest Day

Today is another rest day on the A - Z Challenge

So I thought I would take the opportunity to write a personal post about what's going on for me and my family

Next Friday my Mum is having surgery in Dublin

A few weeks ago 

She saw a consultant 

And the surgery date is next week

It's surgery on her foot

Her toes to be precise 

You see, for as long as we can remember 

Mum has had a wonky toe

Her big toe is kind of growing the wrong way 

And is almost as a right angle to the rest of her toes 

Her toe had been a source of fun over the years 

Especially during the summer when her feet are out 

I would show you a picture 

But I don't want to scare you

But if you look up 'Hammer Toe' on Google 

You will surely find some pics 

Anyway

Up until recently 

Mums funny toe hasn't given her any trouble 

Apart from the way it looks 

Which never has really bothered her 

But now 

She gets pain in her foot and up her leg 

So we finally managed to get her to go to the doctor 

Who promptly referred her to a consultant in Dublin

Who told Mum it was one of the worst cases he has seen

He immediately booked her in for surgery 

It's sounds like a small and simple procedure 

But it is in fact complicated 

Both the big toe and the toe next to it will broken 

Straightened 

And pins will be inserted to keep the toes in place 

All done under general anaesthetic of course

Mum will be in quite a bit of pain following the procedure 

And will be off her feet for a couple of months

So needless to say 

We will be looking after her for that period of time 

My sister and I live  here 

So we will be doing the bulk of the work

But we have another sister and brother who will hopefully help too

We have already done out a roster for cooking and cleaning etc

But I'm sure there are some things that we haven't even thought of yet

We'll get through it 

Albeit with a few sibling arguments and tiffs

The other thing is 

That recently I have become aware of my own big toe 

As it seems to be heading in the same direction as Mums

Which is a worry 

But I guess I don't need to worry about it just yet 

But I definitely won't let it go as bad as my Mums

Whose foot is now quite deformed 

My Dad is also going to see a consultant in Dublin next month 

It's his hands 

Over the years the muscle in his hands has wasted away 

And he now has very little power or strength in them

He can't close buttons 

Open jars 

His hands are quite disabled now 

It was hard to get him to go to the doctor 

But he finally did recently 

And was referred to the consultant 

I really hope they can do something to help his hands 

As soon they will be completely useless if something isn't done

It's worrying 

Both my parents having separate health issues

I guess it's a reminder that they are not getting any younger

It's scary to think that they are getting older

I'm not ready for it 

Even though I'm 34 

I feel like I am still growing up

I need them 

I still need my parents 

It's scary 

It feels like the rug is being pulled from under us 

And all of a sudden 

They are old 

I guess we are never ready to lose our parents 

And I don't think that will happen for a long time 

But it's something that will happen

Whether we are ready or not 

Having said all that 

I was wondering about you 

Do you still have your parents?

Or have you lost either parent?

Are your parents getting older and having health problems?

How do you feel about it?

Are you worried about them?