In response to dVerse’s Birthday Haibun Challenge
dVerse Poets Pub

With the semi-retirement of my husband also came poorer health for me and I wasn’t looking forward to my 60^th birthday. Being the wife of a military man has been a good life but it also brings family separations especially with our children who are now grown up and married with their own. Across states and interstate, I thought the misery of another birthday without my family would drown me in sorrow.

To my delight we all met up in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales – winery country, less than an hour from our daughter’s family home. Our son and his family stayed in the adjoining cabin to ours. Physical pain on our four-hour road trip threatened to ruin plans for a lovely weekend but with the sun bursting through the clouds on arrival and seeing family, filled me with warmth and joy.

I don’t remember much of the weekend but the joy and smiles from our four grandchildren will forever stay in my memory just as the cream and fruit oozed from the birthday pavlova they helped decorate.

joy and smiles to share
lifting a winter of pain
creamy dribbles flow

Chrissy Siggee August 7th 2020 (Sydney time)