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Rewind and playback | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/12/31/rewind-and-playback

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. December 31, 2016. It’s a strange time of year for anyone who’s had a difficult time of it in the last twelve months. The culture expects and demands jollity and it often feels like being sprayed with a layer of fake cream. For me it’s been additionally difficult as this time last year I was in intensive care and critically ill. This Christmas it’s just been a very bad cold and cough and I’ve kept to my bed. A visitor from outer space. Make do and mend. You are commentin...

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Do you speak good news? | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/08/10/do-you-speak-good-news/comment-page-1

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. Do you speak good news? August 10, 2016. An exhausting emotional and physical week continues with results of tests at the hospital. Turns out to be good news – everything is stable, just a tweak of medication and back in three months. Just too much to cope with emotionally and physically – I need to absorb all this and get plenty of sleep. But all is quiet on the western front. One thought on “ Do you speak good news? August 14, 2016 at 10:16 pm. Liked by 1 person. Mary ...

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Hello darkness my old friend | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/05/25/hello-darkness-my-old-friend/comment-page-1

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. Hello darkness my old friend. May 25, 2016. Turns out the good health news is actually a different sort of bad news. Spent the whole day at two hospitals. At the second one; the appointment was in a room in paediatric outpatients. Walked in feeling very sorry for myself to find a room full of very ill children and frantically worried parents. Put everything in context and stiffened the sinews a little. Perfume of the past. May 25, 2016 at 9:02 pm. May 25, 2016 at 9:03 pm.

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October | 2016 | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/10

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. Who’s the expert? October 26, 2016. Consultation goes fine, nothing much to report. We discuss the possible scenarios to come, it’s good talking to someone who doesn’t mess about sugaring the pills of my future. Just sympathetic practicalities. He quizzes me on how life is now and I give him a very edited response. I’m now so au fait with the vocabulary of my illness that he wonders if I’m a medic. Ha! October 25, 2016. But here’s the thing. If you’ve bee...You that you ...

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Hyena bark | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/12/30/hyena-bark

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. December 30, 2016. I’ve never been much of a monarchist, unlike the French side of the family, who are avid for any morsel of royal news and believe that because I live in the capital, I must know all the comings and goings. After nearly a week in bed, I finally got dressed today for the first time and a good pal came over with some supplies and great conversation. So I’m well on the mend. Apart from the hallucinations and high fever, the telly has been not half bad, alt...

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A visitor from outer space | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/12/31/a-visitor-from-outer-space

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. A visitor from outer space. December 31, 2016. It’s been a week since I put my nose outside the door, today I went to have a coffee with a friend. The first few minutes outside were very weird, my familiar street and neighbourhood seemed completely alien, as though I had just landed from another planet. Leave a Reply Cancel reply. Enter your comment here. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:. Address never made public). Notify me of new comments via ema...

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Vulnerable | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2017/01/07/vulnerable

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. January 7, 2017. A man tried to rob me in broad daylight today. I was meeting a friend for coffee at lunch time and stopped at the cashpoint to get some money. Checked all around me as usual before using the machine, counted the money out, put it and my card in my purse. Headed towards the coffee shop. 8217; ‘I think he was Indian’. Cue laughter, ‘No, the coffee.’. Another five minutes passed and a mounted police officer stopped at the lights. I went out to attract h...

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November | 2016 | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/11

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. November 24, 2016. A pal sent me this version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. Sung by a crowd. If you don’t cry watching this, you’re not human. It’s a fun new game I’m having with same pal and her husband, a list of films, books and music which if they don’t make you cry, you’re not human. One gets one’s fun where one can these days. Salade nicoise and soup save the day. November 21, 2016. November 24, 2016. November 21, 2016. Things generally improve as the day carries ...

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Advice to a young person on a train | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/2016/09/21/advice-to-a-young-person-on-a-train/comment-page-1

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. Advice to a young person on a train. September 21, 2016. Coming out to catch a train in the early evening and a warm autumn sun washes over me. Delightful reminder of summer days but a toned down version which makes me want to walk in the sunshine not the shade. The gentle heat feels like a warm blanket, rather than the fierce blow torch of last week. A reminder that summer is nearly gone and we need to relish all this sunshine. A few days away. Leave a Reply Cancel reply.

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sparrowbanquet | A sparrow in the banqueting hall

https://sparrowbanquet.wordpress.com/author/sparrowbanquet

A sparrow in the banqueting hall. An angel on a difficult day. March 8, 2017. Some days are harder than others and today was one of those. No particular reason, weather not great so bones aching, but had a good night’s sleep. Felt weary and morose; 11 am appointment at the docs didn’t help. Took me ages to get there, but all fine. I can’t place her, but she clearly knows me. I use my standard response ‘ish’ which seems to cover most possibilities. To my surprise she grins and says she’s ish too&#46...