Today we had a look at the flowers in the Leighton Gardens of Moss Vale. We also had a nice visit with our friends in Bowral. Peter took all the pictures for I still have not replaced my lovely digital camera. I miss it so much! On the way home we stopped at the Robertson Pie Shop where we had pies for lunch which taste as good as ever. For afternoon coffee we took some fruit pies home that were filled with beautiful fresh cream. Very yummy indeed!
We were lucky to see some tulips at Moss Vale. We did not mind so much that we did not see the tulips in the Corbett Gardens of Bowral where an immense crowd had gathered for the opening of the tulip festival.
Gaby came down with poliomyelitis on her fourth birthday. That was in 1961. When she was 32, in 1989, she left institutional care and moved into her own home in Merrylands West, a Western suburb of Sydney. David (Dave) became her full time carer. But as a quadriplegic with breathing difficulties who needed to sleep in an iron lung, she needed several people to come in on a daily basis to look after her diverse needs.
Anyhow, Gaby was happy to leave the home for disabled people and move into her own home. 40 year old David did for nearly twenty years a marvellous job in doing whatever he could for Gaby. But in the end his health deteriorated more and more. It became impossible for him to the the things for Gaby he would normally have to do as her carer. It was a rather sad situation. Gaby knew that David needed help but she did not know how to provide this for him.
Gaby and David both loved animals. Soon after moving in Gaby acquired a companion dog provided by the people who train dogs for blind people. Dave liked that dog too. They called her Bonnie. A cat named Clyde became Bonnie’s companion. Gaby just adored her animals. They were like her children. She always saw to it that they had everything they needed.
Gaby with BonnieGaby with ClydeBonnie and Clyde in front of the gas heater
Bonnie is being spoiled!
I happen to have still a Christmas card from Gaby and Dave with a calendar for 1998 in it. The card came with a book: A Tolstoy biography by A.N. Wilson, first published in Great Britain in 1988. This is a great reference book and a great read. Gaby chose this book for me as a Christmas gift. She did choose very well. She always took great care to choose gifts for all the family for birthdays and for Christmas. Of course her funds were limited. So she always looked for bargains. Quite often her choices were astoundingly good.
This is the outside of the Christmas card.And this is the inside of it.Gaby moved her electric chair with her chin, she used her mouth stick for phone and computer.Here she looks like having grown up a bit more.Here she is in her bedroom getting ready for the day.After Gaby lost Clyde, she did get a new kitten.Blackie, the kitten, grew into this.Gaby is having fun seeing Father Christmas.
Sadly Gaby lost Bonnie. She was lucky that after some time she was given a replacement dog which she called ‘Honey’. Honey was quite skinny at first but soon filled out a bit.
Gaby can celebrate Christmas 2003 with companion dog Honey.
Auntie, Sister. Grandmother, Great-Grandmother, Mother and Wife of German Descent I’ve lived in Australia since 1959 together with my husband Peter. We have four children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. I started blogging because I wanted to publish some of my childhood memories. I am blogging now also some of my other memories. I like to publish some photos too as well as a little bit of a diary from the present time. Occasionally I publish a story with a bit of fiction in it. Peter, my husband, is publishing some of his stories under berlioz1935.wordpress.com View all posts by auntyuta
10 thoughts on “With Love from Gaby, Dave, Bonnie & Clyde”
cardamone5EditThese pictures, and your narrative, warm my heart.Fondly, ElizabethReply
auntyutaEditThank you very much for your response, dear Elizabeth. Sincerele, Aunty UtaReply
berlioz1935EditGaby was a great character and was loved by all who had contact with her. She never forgot a name or face. On Monday it is two years that she past away suddenly.Reply
auntyutaEditTwo years have passed. We do remember her. Thanks for the comment, Peter.Reply
catterelEditShe lives on in your hearts – such happy memories. Blessings xReply
aussieian2011EditA beautiful sad story to read Uta, a story of a Princess and her Prince Charming. David is to be commended for his love and loyalty, that is a beautiful picture of Gaby at her computer desk. Regards IanReply
auntyutaEditYou are too right there, Ian, love and loyalty do play a great part in this beautiful and sad story. Gaby at her computer desk, this is indeed a lovely picture. Thank you, Ian, for your heartfelt comments. Very much appreciated! Many thanks, UtaReply
auntyutaEditJust having read the whole story once more and looking at all the pictures that go with it, I cannot help myself, I feel I want to reblog this again in memory of Gaby!
Gaby died on the 15th of July 2012. This is going to be two years ago tomorrow. I copied here a post I published two years ago as a celebration of her life. The pictures show a lot of her carers, friends and family. We all remember you, Gaby.
Auntie, Sister. Grandmother, Great-Grandmother, Mother and Wife of German Descent I’ve lived in Australia since 1959 together with my husband Peter. We have four children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. I started blogging because I wanted to publish some of my childhood memories. I am blogging now also some of my other memories. I like to publish some photos too as well as a little bit of a diary from the present time. Occasionally I publish a story with a bit of fiction in it. Peter, my husband, is publishing some of his stories under berlioz1935.wordpress.com View all posts by auntyuta
cardamone5EditDear Aunty Uta:I am so sorry for your loss, but also happy that you appreciated and celebrated Gaby’s spirit both during and after her life. Lovely passage and photos. My heart goes out to you, friend.Fondly, ElizabethReply
auntyutaEditThank you so much, dear Elizabeth. I very much appreciate your comment. Gaby’s photos fill out a great place in our hearts and memories. Sincerely, Aunty UtaReply
auntyutaEditI thank all the carers for the outstanding care they’ve been giving Gaby over many years. I love you all!Reply
elizabeth2560EditI am sure you will always miss her and love her, and there is so much loss and sadness. I admire you for your celebrating of Gaby’s life and to think of her life in positive ways.Reply
auntyutaEditHi Elizabeth, yes in lots of ways Gaby made sure that we are always going to remember her. She has been very much a family person, even for all these years when she lived apart from her family. Over the years it became more and more apparent, how brave she actually was. Thinking back over her life now, her braveness is something that maybe we did sometimes not fully comprehend but took it somehow for granted. I think she deserves that we celebrate her life, for she showed us how to enjoy life, even when it means to have to overcome a lot of difficulties.Reply
auntyutaEditTo be honest, Linda, last year July 15 did not stick as much in our minds. Maybe the memory of her is felt a bit more every year! Reply
The EmuEditA beautiful celebration tribute to Gabys life Uta. May her memory be a celebration of her life every day for you. IanReply
auntyutaEditYes, somehow or other we seem to remember her every day. Thanks for your comment, dear Ian. UtaReply
auntyutaEditReblogged this on AuntyUta and commented:I published this post six years ago and wrote in a comment: ‘I thank all the carers for the outstanding care they’ve been giving Gaby over many years. I love you all!’ Looking at the photos again, I am reminded again of the excellent care Gaby has been given and how this enrich the last years of her life! Tomorrow is going to be the 8th anniversary of her dying. Gaby, you are not forgotten! Here is something else I wrote in the comment section six years ago: ‘in lots of ways Gaby made sure that we are always going to remember her. She has been very much a family person, even for all these years when she lived apart from her family. Over the years it became more and more apparent, how brave she actually was. Thinking back over her life now, her braveness is something that maybe we did sometimes not fully comprehend but took it somehow for granted. I think she deserves that we celebrate her life, for she showed us how to enjoy life, even when it means to have to overcome a lot of difficulties.’
Join them in the remote north of Australia as the Yolngu clans of Arnhem Land come together for a four-day celebration of art, music, dance, ceremony and song.
Hosted by the Yothu Yindi Foundation, Garma is like nothing you’ve experienced before, a place where the freshwater and saltwater meet, an opportunity for cross-cultural exchange.
Daily workshops give Garma guests the chance to immerse themselves in different aspects of Yolngu culture, while the Key Forum policy conference hosts discussions and debates on major issues. The stunning outdoor Gapan art gallery – lit up under the stars – is a sight to behold, while the daily bunggul (ceremonial dance) at sunset is not to be missed.
The air temperature was 5 degrees and the water about 11, but that did not stop about 2,000 swimmers from plunging naked into Hobart’s River Derwent to celebrate the passing of the longest night.
Key points:
The River Derwent plunge started at sunrise — 7:42am
The event is held to celebrate the passing of the winter solstice, or longest night
It marks the end of the 2022 Dark Mofo festival
The annual Dark Mofo nude solstice swim is billed as offering “renewal and resurrection” to those willing to strip off outdoors during a Tasmanian winter.
But it may have left some with more of an ice cream headache.
One participant braced for the cold by planning the best technique for the brief dip.
“I think in and out, head down, bum up,” she said.
“Or maybe bum down, head up.”
Another swimmer’s philosophy was “feel the fear and do it anyway”.
Participants gathered before first light, huddling in coats and towels before dropping their kit and running into the water en masse.
Temperley Eva and Stephanie Plain met at the Dark Mofo festival and did the nude swim together.(ABC News: Luke Bowden)
Cairns resident Temperley Eva said it was the perfect way to end the festival.
However, the chilly water was a new experience.
“Cairns does not have cold water at all … you can’t have a cold shower, it’s lukewarm at best.”
Kerry Watson and Colin Sandbach loved the physical challenge and the camaraderie.(ABC News: Luke Bowden)
New South Wales tourists Kerry Watson and Colin Sandbach joined the swim after an internet search of the best winter activities on a trip to Tasmania.
Kerry enjoyed challenging her body and stepping outside her comfort zone.
“I’m not comfortable with being naked amongst other people but it didn’t matter,” she said.
“I think I was the last one out and it was just invigorating and youthful and I don’t want to be old before my time.”
Colin loved the atmosphere and camaraderie.
“Everyone’s in a great frame of mind it’s just like a real party,” he said.
Nude swim manager Gemma Chisholm said the swim’s popularity had grown and many people had to be turned away, with tickets selling out two days after going on sale.
Swimmers celebrate the longest night being behind them for another year.(ABC News: Luke Bowden)
On Easter Saturday, 95-year-old artist John Olsen made the final touches to four paintings and feeling unwell, laid down his paintbrush for the last time. A stroke had finally felled the old master. On the day of his state funeral, Australian Story revisits the Olsens, a family forged by their father’s passion and drive for painting. As John became a darling of the art world in the 60s and 70s, his obsessive focus on dedication to his work often cast a long shadow on those around him. Months after his death, the Vivid festival of light will pay tribute to John Olsen, projecting his art onto the “greatest blank canvas on earth” — the sails of the Sydney Opera House. His children, Tim and Louise Olsen, will be there to marvel at his achievements and celebrate the life that has shaped them. Subscribe:
Yes, I definitely feel, that I live on bonus time, not borrowed time, but bonus time!
I do not know of any person in my family, going back a few hundred years, wo did live for as long as I’ve lived already. I am still healthy and strong, even though I have a number of age related handicaps, like very bad vision, hearing problems, breathing problems, problems with arthritis and dizziness and overall balance problems.
Still, I am healthy, and some people seem to think I can live much longer, maybe even reaching the age of 100. I don’t care. for as long as I am allowed to die a natural death. The fact is, that for quite a few years now, I have lived on bonus time!
This reminds me about a dear friend of ours, that my husband talked about often. Lesley came to Australia as a Hungarian migrant. Irene, his bride, lived in Croatia near the Hungarian border. She followed him, and they got married in Australia and had two sons, who are doing well. The couple moved to our complex of ten villas when they were already retired. My husband Peter and I became good friends with them. Meeting Les at the letter-box, Les told Peter one day, that he was living on bonus time. Les was already in his eighties by then, and Peter was a few years younger. Three days later Les was dead. He had a stroke and could not be saved.
I am still good friends with Irene. But sadly Peter died in December of 2020 of some very severe, terminal health problems . . . .
“Apparently the survival rates of spouses on their own after the death of one a partner are sad reading. Over 66% also pass away within 6 months as well. Loneliness is the main reason.”
I often contemplate now, how I seem to face a dilemma that is not unlike that of the one that dear Gaby had to face after David became too sick to do any caring for her. Well, officially, he had been just her carer, not her partner. They had separate bedrooms of course. As a paid for carer he had to be in the house with her at nightime, in case Gaby needed him in an emergency. When David did take a few day’s leave to travel somewhere to have a break, Peter and I, as well as our young daughter Caroline, would stay with Gaby for a few days. We always had a good time with Gaby. It was like a little holiday. But then of course we were always happy, when we could travel home again.
So, there came a time, when David could not do anything for Gaby anymore. So, Gaby had to look for somebody who could replace him. She tried and tried to find somebody. She never gave up. How can a 54 year old very disabled person find a trustworthy live-in partner? Difficult, very, very difficult. This is all I can say. Now, did Gaby want to end up in institutional care? No, never! So, to be honest, isn’t it somehow a blessing that Gaby did die peacefully in her own home just a few weeks before her 55th birthday? – Originally her life expectancy had been 30 years! I think, one can say, she did do extremely well with her life.
So, to compare the last stages of Gaby’s life with my last stages. Aren’t we in a similar boat? Nobody, absolutely nobody, is inclined to share some of his life with me. There is not even one person, who would be willing to share just an evening with me! The only exception is my son Martin, who might spend about a week with me, that is he may visit for about a week maybe three times a year! Well, of course these are very beautiful special weeks for me. But how can these few weeks make me want to live forever when for the rest of the year I have the feeling to go on living is not worthwhile anymore, because, really, there is nobody living close by, who would be able to spend a few hours with me on a more or less regular basis. Yes, one can have hope, hope, hope. The fact is, with rapidly advancing years, there may come a time, when hope just is not enough anymore, and one is only too willing to welcome eternal rest! 🙂
I can’t keep up with the younger people anymore. All my family are much younger than me. A more elderly person, with not too many other attachments, might understand much better, what sort of company I do need, and hopefully could make valuable time for me. I feel, it is really only natural, if my time is running out now. I am only too willing to face up to it. I think, for the rest of my days, I’ll just concentrate more and more on reading, talking, and writing. I am determined to enjoy live as much as possible for as long as I live, but that does not mean, that I want to live much longer, or for ever and ever. When the time is up, it is up.
“Holy Mary, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.”
cardamone5
AuntyUta 