SEPTEMBER IN REVIEW

The month of September turned out to be a very busy month that swung from extreme happiness to extreme sadness, resulting in journeys between spring in the southern hemisphere, to autumn in the northern hemisphere.

At the beginning of the month we flew over to New South Wales from Perth for the beautiful spring wedding of my son Steven and his beautiful bride, Christina. They were married at the stunning Philip Shaw Winery in the charming town of Orange some three and a half hours drive from Sydney. They were a truly breathtaking couple, and the moving ceremony made sure there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. The venue was simply exquisite with an inviting log fire burning as the evening turned chilly, and the sit-down meal accompanied with fine wines could not be faulted. A wonderful time was enjoyed by our two families until reluctantly it was time to wrap up the festivities and head back to the highly rated De Russie Boutique Hotel after a very long day. All in all, we made magical memories during the four days spent in Orange and the coffee shops and cafes did not disappoint either!

Less than a week later, I was about to learn the very sad news that my mum who had raised me since I was 10 months old had passed away in the UK at the ripe old age of 95. Even though it had been imminent for a long while, and however prepared you think you are, it still comes as a big shock realising that it’s the end of an era and a generation. As her years stretched out into her nineties, I came to think of her like Queen Elizabeth ll. You’re acutely aware how old she is, and you understand that it’s impossible that she’ll always be there, yet you just convince yourself that she’ll be around forever. But like the queen, she eventually became too frail to exist, and with advanced dementia added to the mix, the time for her to leave this earth had arrived.

So with a heavy heart I arranged my flight to the UK where it was now autumn, and prepared myself for seeing my mum for the last time and her funeral. My time in the UK was bittersweet; although I was there for a very sad reason, by the same token it was lovely to spend time with my brother and eldest son and their families as well as dear friends. RIP mum. And now I need to prepare for another flight in a little over a week to Phoenix, Arizona to collect my award at The International Impact Book Awards Gala – I shall be sure to let you know how it all goes!

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