What a difference a day makes ...

I said in my last post that a lot can happen in a week and I wasn’t wrong. Right now it’s more like what a difference a day makes!

I often find myself thinking in terms of the past or the future rather than the right now. I think we’re wired to look forward to good stuff, such as when we’re planning a holiday. A friend of mine went on a cruise last December, and in the months leading up to it, when things got frantic at work or at home, she’d pull out her cruise plans and have a little virtual escape to tide her over (pardon the pun).

The same is true for me with holidays, but in the reverse. I’ve only travelled overseas twice, but each time it was challenging to get my head around the fact that I was home again in Australia when a week ago I had been standing on the rim of The Grand Canyon, or having a meal overlooking The Thames in London.

Considering I had many unanswered questions a week ago, are things any clearer now?

Last week: Would my son Andrew be able to get home from the UK? Would his fiancé Ruth be able to leave the UK? Will there be a wedding?

The question mark over Andrew’s travel was wiped away as he flew into Sydney yesterday. He has headed off to Bountiful for the obligatory 14 days of self-isolation for people returning from overseas. As things currently stand, Ruth cannot leave the UK – in fact, that country has gone into lockdown, with people only leaving their houses if absolutely necessary. It is difficult for young hearts to be separated with no confirmation of how long that time apart will be. Will there be a wedding? Yes, but at a date to be confirmed.

Last week: What if my employer shuts down?

Well that one did happen! We are still working through the implications of that, so watch this space. 

Last week: Will my stepdad’s cancer treatment go ahead? 

As of today, yes. It begins tomorrow and we are praying that’s one appointment that stays put.

Last week: Will I or someone close to me get coronavirus? 

Well, Cam and I are fine and taking all necessary precautions. Andrew’s safely in isolation. Our daughter Claire is now working from home. A few days ago it was thought that my dad in Queensland had it, but just today we have discovered it was a false alarm and he’s recovering well from the common, garden-variety flu – nasty, but not life-threatening. Our cousin in America has it, but is on the mend. Our Facebook chat groups amongst the family are active and lively, and we're all keeping tabs on the older members.

As each day brings new and unanticipated challenges, and we try to sort the fact from the panic, it has become even more crucial to just focus on one day at a time. My brain can't handle any more. How will we pay the bills? We may be able to get some financial assistance from the government but there is nothing I can do to fast track that right now as the government’s website crashes under the pressure of so many other Aussies in the same boat.

Apart from obeying all of the government guidelines, I can’t do anything in my own strength to make a difference to the longevity of this situation.

We may not be able to plan for tomorrow or the next day right now with any accuracy, but we can plan further ahead, to life after this crazy season. 

We pressed on over the weekend and continued with some planting and watering at Bountiful, because one day this crisis will be over, and it helps to do some normal things that position us for that.

We lost a lot of the Vibernum we had planted as hedging due to combination of drought, heat, smoke and grasshoppers. 

We have replaced eleven of these with a relatively new discovery we made called Elaeagnus Macrophylla, also know as the Russian Olive. These things are supposed to be evergreen, tolerant of drought, wind and frost, and grow tall - crazy fast! Sounds bulletproof, you say? We're praying they live up to the hype. 

Cam finished planting the wisteria under the amazing arbor he constructed. I am so proud of what he has built. One day, when the world returns to normal, there’ll be a wedding ceremony under it. We have planted a variety of Japanese white wisteria called Wisteria floribunda Shiro-Kapitan throughout the structure, and on each end we have planted a pale pink variety called Wisteria floribunda Carnea. I’m looking forward to the spring, when they’ll put on their foliage and flowers.

What are you doing that lets you focus on the time after we're done with this crazy season?

Of course, I can't finish without sharing the song for this post.

This song was going around in my head today, even before I began. How could I go past What a difference a day makes? As a kid who grew up in the sixties and seventies, I realise how many songs I have picked up through television – whether they were used for advertising, or if key phrases were used to promote music albums. I’m pretty sure that’s how I remembered One Day at a Time, Sweet Jesus and quite likely this song as well as it’s really just the first couple of lines that have stuck. My version wasn’t that easy to find, as it was a 1975 disco-style update by Esther Phillips of an original classic. It was originally recorded by Dinah Washington and became known as her signature song, and recordings by The Temptations, Tony Bennett and Amy Winehouse followed. How strange when a particular voice replays perfectly in your head after forty something years - I had no idea of Esther Phillips but as soon as I heard it I knew it was the one. 

Stay safe 

Tracey 👋

With thanks to the YouTube channel of John 1948FourC2 for Esther Phillips – What A Difference A Day Makes

And to Torsten Detlaff from Pexels for We are in the Garden