Going Away

ANOTHER Christmas.... with those you like [or not] and without those you actually want to be with. We can truly say we have it all, albeit only two boys, two new daughters and little Anaya. It's been a bliss to recoup in the Hoedspruit Wildlife Estate for a week - no cars, bundles of keys, home alarm, motor alarms, fence alarm, walking with my panic button on my belt ... you name it. It's been an extraordinarly difficult year for me and Rudy [incl. four operations between us; two burglaries; two attempted burglaries [with five dogs 'in charge' nevertheless!] - I just had enough of city life and the additional stress due to being on the alert ALL the time! Having our own business, lots of theft occur on our jobs as well.... No way to live. No way. In the bush I could breath, no keys or laptop nearby, cellphone turned on silent, no tv. Heaven.... UNTILL stress set in the day before our return when the electric fence alarm went off to scare the two sisters, doing pet and house-set, out of their socks [in their case, their payamas!]. Ten minutes later our power went off too, confusing them all over again where the problem is.... by this time our armed response security system called at 01:00. In the end their dad and brother came along armed to walk the premises.... brother decided to sleep over, two sisters shared a double bed with our five dogs joining them - all on one bed! All the previous six days of relaxation was something of the past due to these events and I broke down [whilst in the bush, sipping coffee while sobbing like a baby!]. I DO hope we will have a Zimbabwean turn-around in this country in not too long in the future. If things on the Zim side start to turn around, like in the 'good old days' when this country was described the 'bread basket of the world' - who knows, we might retire there! OR open a bakery, who knows? OR selling baskets along the road? Without staff, pensions, the union, staff medical contributions and lots of help to their extended families..... Cash payments only! Having said all this, we still ARE blessed to be alive, healthy and have one another.