loved ones....

Yesterday I ran into an old friend, that I had worked with last year. A Russian chick who had recently moved from Russia with her family to live in NZ.I havent seen her since about last july so it was a nice suprise to bump into her out and about in town. Unfortunatley she has had a bit of a rough patch last year after we last saw each other( understatement of the year actually).Her story had me in tears, yes in the middle of labmbton quay in town, in tears-2 chicks hugging and sobbing away.

The last time I saw this chick, was at a work dinner last year. She brought along her husband.They are both older people ( late 30s early 40s maybe) but definitely dont look it. They both are Les Mills avid fans, and her hubby was a tall,tan handsome buff blonde guy. He looked like he could be a surfer or Iron man or something. Anyways, just before christmas my poor friends' husband dropped dead. I know, I tried to think how to word that better, but there is no other way to say it. He literally dropped dead. He was rushed to the hospital emergency department where a commotion of docs and surgeons and nurses and radiological staff tried to ressusicate him and find out what had gone wrong, seeing as he was a previously fit and healthy guy.

They eventually found out the cause of death but much too late. Death, as it does sometimes, appeared outa nowhere and calimed yet another life,leaving behind a grief striken lot of people wondering 'why'.They found that he had developed a dissecting aortic anuresym which is where the aorta ( main blood vessel of the heart) develops a sorta small tear in the wall of the vessel and blood slowly leaks into it and balloons the side of the vessel out. This ballooned bit becomes weakened and if undetected can burst and kill you instantly. So thats what happened to him.

My friend understandably was heartboken. To say the least,She was also angry, hurt,confused, felt guilty, depressed, the list goes on. She is a doctor so understandably could not help but think she had missed the subtle symptoms that this may have been developing ( despite knowing that sometimes these things go undetected for years) the worst part about losing her husband, whom she had been married to for >20years and still was madly in love with, was that in the 6 months prior she had been working extra hard. She had been doing late nights and extra shifts at work. She told me, when it came to taking time off work to organise her husbands funeral, she could not remember the last few months with him, she hardly saw him , she actualy couldnt even remember him round the house or anything like that. Which was soo sad to hear.The only time she can remember him, she tells me, is at the gym. She said they used to spot each other with weights, and thats the only time she can remember being with him. So now she goes to the gym, not just to excercise, but to 'remember' her husband. Now doesnt that make you want to cry!!

so all in all, she said to me, and I now say to you, to look after your partners and your families. Dont get so involved with work that you forget to make time to do things with them. As you never know when something tragic could strike you and the things and people we take for granted, could dissappear.

Gosh I came home and hugged my husband to death, and told him that I loved him soo much and that we need to spend more time together ( even though we eat out twice a week and watch movies at least once) I think he was a bit surprised when I sprung that on him ( lol) but I told him why and he understood!!

Anyways, I hope you all remember this and look after your loved ones, if work is devouring your life at the moment - remember to tell yourself that there are more important things in life!!ok, dats all for now!!