To Special Friends

When my mother studied at university, she met Carol and they became great friends. They travelled Europe together in 956. Amazing eh? After they had married and had children, the two couples decided to buy property on a lake upon north. Carol's sister summered at that lake for many years. Both families  stayed with Flora to get to know the lake.

A couple of years later, the families bought a large plot of land which they divided into two. They built similar cottages and would spend every summer and many winters there. Both families became close and many happy memories ensued.

But my greatest memories deal with Flora. We met in 1974 and we have been friends ever since. I would escape my parents and go visit her. She always enjoyed company even from a kid like myself. I would help her bake and I remember one wonderful Tomato Cake that was delicious.

Through the years, I made a point of spending time with Flora. I would paddle my canoe over to her place and spend a wonderful afternoon with her. We would talk of many things. She is a very interesting woman. Her alcoholic husband left her with four young children whom she supported as a guidance counsellor at an esteemed high school. She has also travelled the world.

Even though Flora is old enough to be my grandmother, I thought of her as a best friend and a confidant. I could talk with her about anything. Nothing was out of bounds. I told her things I would never tell anyone else. I felt so lucky and honoured to have a friend like her.

Recently, Flora's daughter moved her into a nursing home in Guelph which is an easy 40 minute drive from me. Finally, yesterday, I drove to visit her and it was great to see her looking so well. She is 91 now but still as clever as ever. No brain impairment at all even though her body has slowed down. She is hard of hearing and her legs cause her trouble. Her hip had been operated on and gives her problems yet she still manages to walk.

We all have that person in our lives who you consider a mentor. Flora is mine. She is a brave, intelligent, honest, caring, wonderful woman. I am so lucky to be able to call her my friend.

I have finished my third novel entitled That Truthful Place about ten children who develop telepathy and the course their lives take. I'm self-publishing through Createspace (Amazon) and it will be available soon. I will keep you posted.

have fun,
patty
www.pattylesser.com
@PattyLesser

The Wonderful World of Sleep

For most of my life, I have been tired. Not the yawning once in a while tired, I mean exhausted. And no, I couldn't sleep during the day. It was hard enough trying to fall asleep at night. I never knew why. I constantly relayed this problem to my doctors, but all they did was just give me more and more sleeping pills which didn't work.

Finally, I begged my family doctor to send me to a sleep disorders clinic. A month later, I was involved in a sleep lab where I spent the night in the hospital with numerous electrodes all over my body. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea and prescribed a CPAC machine.

It has been a year since I was diagnosed and I'm sleeping better than ever. No longer am I tired when I wake up. I wake up alert, energized and excited for the day ahead. And I'm not tired all day. It is such a wonderful feeling. Really, it's a miracle.

Sleep apnea is cured by wearing a small mask over my nose all night. It consistently blows air into my nose. That's it and I'm cured. No side effects. The machine works silently. I would never go to bed again without wearing it. I have never felt better in my life.

In the past, I would fall asleep somewhere between 2:00 or 3:00 a.m. and would wake up around 11:30 to 12:30 p.m. Waste of a day. Now, I automatically fall asleep around 11 p.m. and wake up naturally at around 8:00 a.m. I feel so much better with this cycle.More normal eh? I'm so much more productive with that schedule. So wonderful.

As far as book signings go, I finished my last one on October 4th. I am now scheduling them for the spring. I hope to return to six of the stores. I won't do any signings during the winter because the weather is just so unpredictable. This winter has been forecasted to be as bad as last year. I don't want to take chances with the driving.

have fun,
patty
www.pattylesser.com
@PattyLesser