A Friend in Need

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

How are you all doing?

It's been a hectic time in my life of late but things are getting done. Nothing too exciting just a lot of hard slogging with shopping expeditions for small items (shopping is not a favourite activity of mine), a lot of small household jobs requiring a lot of elbow grease (rust removal, grout cleaning, small diys, etc. and planting.  Spring is always a busy time as I dust off the cobwebs of winter, quite literally and figuratively, and prepare the household and gardens for the warmer days ahead.

 I went out to the university hospital to meet up with a friend of mine on Mother's Day.  Both he and I lost our mothers several years ago and he tends to get very depressed on Mother's Day without his mom to call. He has been in hospital for 5 long months which is another reason for him to be depressed.  Currently he is in rehabilitation at the university hospital to try to re-learn to walk.  He lost several toes and part of his heel on one foot about 5 months ago. A few years ago he lost several toes from his other foot and he'd been in a wheelchair ever since.  I'm not sure what happened but I think during one of his many surgeries they must have damaged a nerve because all of a sudden he couldn't walk anymore.

He insists he is not going home until he can get out of his wheelchair and walk again.  Otherwise he's thinking of seeking medical assistance in dying (MAID).  It wouldn't be his first time to think seriously about MAID and I know he was thinking of applying after the experience a few years ago of needing to get around in a wheelchair. I hate hearing him talk about it but I can certainly understand his feelings. 

He has been to hell and back for many years already with various medical and housing issues.  He's experienced a lot of discrimination and ill treatment by both housing and health officials.   Right now he is battling with the management at his current place of residence and he's fighting to remain in his apartment even though he is in hospital. It's basically the housing management views that he is unable to live independently and they want him to go into an assisted living facility.

Wednesday update:  The eviction  threats against my friend seem to have stopped. At least for now he can breathe and his building administration is s now being very nice  I guess they don't want a legal fight.

There is much more to the story but I also don't pretend to understand it all. My role is just to try and be supportive and a listening ear so I'll leave the story there.

So on Sunday I went out to meet him and treat him to Starbucks coffee and a lemon loaf.  We enjoyed a long natter. It was also good for both of us to have a visit with one another.  We both lost our mother's years ago to their various health challenges and it gives us time to reminisce and share our memories. Both of us met the other's mother once or twice though they both lived far from Vancouver.