Mother's becoming ill has thrown my entire life into upheaval. Her disease is manifesting as rage and paranoia, most of it directed at me. My children had to move out for their own safety, my husband isn't here to help me a lot f the time, I've been given all of Mom's old responsibilities on top of the ones I already had.... It's all been harder than it sounds. Many people (hi, Fati!) have been telling me that I need to be sure and take care of myself in the midst of this particular hurricane, or risk losing my own mind. If I burn out, I won't be able to take care of anybody.
Well, Operation Preserve My Mental Health started this weekend, and so far, so good! Friday I went out with my girls on a shopping trip, and even spent money on myself (which I never do). Yesterday, I went over to John's house (Stanley Ford, you remember him, he comes in the Cantina periodically), and hung out with him, his wife, his kids, and his gotta-be-on-cocaine-they're-so-hyper dogs. Today, after church, I plan to celebrate the beginning of Holy Week by watching Boondock Saints I and II.
Moreover, I plan to make this a regular thing. One weekend a month is MINE MINE MINE, and nobody can take it away from me. Surely that can help my mental health, right?
Oh, and one more thing. My writing has been completely deadlocked for two weeks. After the Friday outing, I was able to start writing again. I guess all the tension was making me too crazy to write. So yay for that!