Lily was quite the rebel, a very active, determined, and fiercely independent little lady, so she was not a happy gal when a brain tumour stole her mobility during the last year of her life.
This did not kill her spunky spirit nor her dry humour that would have us all in fits of laughter. She also used to scold me at times, and I would feel like a disobedient child although I realized afterward that she, in fact, was right!
Mom Lily managed to reach 90 full years, during which she faced many tragedies, but also much joy.
We took her on what was to be her last holiday after her ankle fracture had healed, but she was not happy that a caregiver would need to go with her for the night-time calls of nature as carrying a commode as well as luggage and food, and, and...was out of the question ;)
There was much excitement from our housekeeper Cynthia when we asked if she would like to come with us to help Ouma Lily at night as she had a good bond with Mom. Cynthia knew that Mom was not going to appreciate the fact that she needed babysitting though!
My brother and his wife as well as our youngest son joined us in a large villa down at the Caribbean Estates, wich is bordered by the Umtamvuna River, the boundary between the Eastern Cape and Kwazulu Natal, and the Indian Ocean along the eastern boundary, giving one the best of both worlds, with the lagoon offering river cruizes or fishing, and the ocean with its long sandy beach perfect for long walks or fishing.
The accommodation is just awesome, spacious, and well-appointed with gorgeous views of the river and the ocean peeping out in the distance. Mom could still walk up a staircase at that stage by holding onto the rail, with one of us close behind her.
Cynthia knew she was going to have fun with us, and she did! We taught her to play Rummikub and she ended up being the champ. My brother took his casino games along, and she hit some lucky streaks with that as well!
Mom used to join in, but that last holiday she just sat quietly and watched while we were laughing at all the fiddling going on in that casino!
We always enjoy taking the riverwalk and fishing from the jetty, but sadly Mom could not get down there any longer.
It was a bittersweet holiday for Mom, she loved that part of the world but was used to going for walks on her own, picking up her fishing rod, and determinedly walking down to the rocks.
She often showed the menfolk a thing or two, coming back with a nice-sized fish, while they were still busy studying the tides and the phases of the moon, getting the bait ready, and literally spending more time planning than actually fishing!
This was the last fish that Mom caught when my brother and his wife took her down to T.O. Strand Caravan Park after the loss of my Dad - a nice-sized Bronze Bream.
We used to camp there as children, but this time we spent a day picnicking there. Mom could not walk on the sea sand anymore. We found a nice sheltered spot on the beach, and the guys managed to help her there. She sat there looking very sad, gazing at the rocks and remembering days gone by when the whole family, except me, would fish on the rocks or from the sea-shore.
I would find new friends or have a holiday crush and go home broken-hearted at the end of the holidays!
We would swim and sunbathe all day, yep, back then we would actually oil ourselves to get a nice golden suntan; sunscreen wasn't even on the agenda!
Even though it made Mom sad sitting there, she thanked us afterward for taking her to this place of many happy memories.
Stunning sunsets at the end of the day kind of mellows the soul, saying it's time to rest now!
Rest well Mom Lily, but I'm sure you are still up to your antics for those you are with now, running on the sand and going fishing in an endless wondrous ocean beyond our imagination!
I hope you enjoyed reading about my photo memories, the latest Silver Bloggers topic for #silverprompt, and remember nothing stops you from writing on this topic if you miss the deadline tomorrow Thursday at midnight GMT (also known as UTC); it just will not be in time for the special #SilverPrompts curation post.
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