Evelyn

If ever you start to feel sorry for yourself (as I admit to doing when the meds wear off) this woman is the antidote. She's been in hospital for 5 months and is desperate to go home to her extended loving family, who visit daily and are campaigning to be able to look after her there instead of handing her over to a nursing home. They have bought all the necessary equipment to make that possible, and await a decision soon. A daughter of a farming family, Evelyn initially worked as a nanny to a landed local family, then on meeting her farmer husband returned to that life and raised her own family in the glorious Cumbrian countryside, helping anyone and everyone in that village tradition along the way. A few years ago she developed diabeties and instead of enjoying a well-earned retirement had to cope with losing her sight, a finger and a leg and now has a raging infection in the other knee which is not responding to antibiotics. She cannot see the grandchildren she knows or the new greatgrandchild she can only hold, but she is constantly cheerful and optimistic and never sees anything bad in anyone, always plucking out the good in people and situations. She enjoys the birdsong outside the window, the sound of the spectacular thunderstorm we had the other night, and the minutiae of farm and village life related to her by her family each day, right down to how many lambs are born and what was cooked for meals. (Not lambs - that came out wrong!). I was to be sent home the next day when this was taken so won't know what happens to her, but I do hope she gets back to the home and family she loves very soon. God bless you Evelyn. X