There is always hope - In the name of Thiago - Day 98

As any football fan will tell you, the despair is easy to cope with, it’s the bloody hope that gets you.

But I’m going to run with the whole hope thing and see if I can’t even turn it into some sort of expectation a little later in the year for good measure. Yes, today is a better day. And I reckon a lot of that is down to having time with my girls. Not too much time you understand as Elisa’s default setting is still not to arise from her slumbers until well into the afternoon but certainly enough to remind me why I wanted a family in the first place.

The weather helps of course. We are lucky enough to have a reasonable sized garden, which serves as a natural escape plan during this terrible time. And bloody hell, Angelica doesn’t half make the most of it. You’d think that after an exhausting 13 hour shift on the Covid-19 ward at our local hospital that she’d probably be wanting to be putting her feet up.

No fucking chance. That little trooper seems to view relaxing as a personal affront to her Duracell bunny tendencies. She was out there again smashing through weeds and digging up dry soil. It just fires her up I guess, gees she loves that garden.

I’ve always seen the garden as Angelica’s domain, which frankly is an enormous cop out. Everything she knows about the garden is self taught, so it’s fair to say that her incredible go-getting attitude extends to well beyond the way she views nursing.

Angelica comes from a relatively middle class – which in itself is fairly unusual – background in north-eastern Brazil. The family didn’t struggle as many Brazilian families do. She grew up around the favelas but not in them, though her family were certainly not wealthy. She knows the value of things.

That hard working attitude briefly rubbed off on me today and I actually liked it. Okay I was only weeding and I’m way off knowing anything of any note that goes on in this wonderful place but I could yet become a convert.

I was commenting over the hedge to my next door neighbour Steve, (that’s Super Steve for those of you who have been reading the blog since January), that my expertise levels can be summed up like this: if it’s green it’s probably a weed, if it’s another colour you should probably leave it be. Yep, I’m that bad!

Anyway after dedicating the first half of the day to working in the garden the second half was for playing in it. Elisa joined in for a bit until she got a ‘bit tired’ and of course, as most of you are aware by now, refused to be in any photos.

All in all, it was a good day, a day interspersed with good news from people saying they would still get involved in the walk despite it now being in September/October instead of the height of the summer. I think it’s all going to be alright you know.

You can help it be even more alright by getting involved in the fundraising effort, either by making a donation to the cause or joining me for a stage of my ‘In the name of Thiago memorial walk’ this autumn. Go on you know you want to. I certainly want you to!