A Wonderful Life
Without Prejudice
They say look forward to good things happening and good things happen. I am so happy and content at the moment that I find it hard to grasp. So does Yvette, neurotically, she worries about small things and I tell her to not worry.
"Don't sweat the small stuff " . I say
"And it's all small stuff "
To silence her I list all the great things going on in our lives. She was a single Mum of five,when she moved to her newish home in Cranbourne. Alena and I went to the head of Public Housing and begged for her to be moved, she had left her violent junkie boyfriend, Father to her kids. A teenage rebellion relationship that had burnt out.
But she had to admit failure and move on, the kids the only part of the mess worth saving. All boys, aged 15, 10, 9, 7 and baby of 1. The baby born 5 weeks prem.
We moved her in, she and all boys sick with gastro but it was a new house a new start and now has been home for eight years. She said she would have been " stuffed " without the Ministry.
The house at first an apology to the neighbours who all owned theirs now rocks. We have attacked it with a passion and created a beautiful home for all. It's been sheer hard work, both Yvette and I sporting the same mysterious left wrist injury and sore backs. But she's seven months pregnant with her eighth child, after seven boys a longed for little girl.
We had such a chaotic life it is hard now to remember it all.
But now we have secure housing, a safe harbour, an important thing for a woman with kids, many kids, the older now helping the younger. The oldest four finding it hard to connect with their two new half brothers, babies to their teenage angst. But the oldest Alpha male is away till December, cooling his heels and he hates it. Good, maybe he won't be so stupid again.
The males overwhelmed Yvette with their relentless testosterone and now she rules as the Queen Bee because she is having a baby girl. She used to defer to the males, her younger partner Peter, her sons, feeling guilty she had exposed them all to her crazy ex partner. But not any more. Now she feels justified. She brought the boys up on her own as a single Mum. Now three are working, two at school and two toddlers, one who starts school next year.
She is proud of helping her partner Peter to gain his learners, help get him working, help him to mature, he had an incident two years ago when he was acting like an idiot and took ice, ended up in drug court and has spent the last year doing a drug course fir drug court. A lot if people say they would rather do prison than drug court.
Peter is due to graduate Thursday, passing in one year rather than two.he is their honour student, so young, so determined, so successful. He has raised five step sons for the last six years and although they hated him at first they have come to get along with him. The ten year old has only known Peter as his father figure most of his life. Peter the man preparing his lunch and never forgetting to buy his step son lemonade.
Peter lost his Mum, Vicky to cancer this year, she was only in her fifties as was his Dad who passed three years ago from a massive heart attack at work. Just went face down on the nature strip and was pronounced dead. Awful. The Mum never recovered and had cervical cancer diagnosed shortly after her beloved husbands death. We think of them together now. Peter now has only himself, as parent and his own little family of two boys and a girl to look forward to.
He's young, he has the energy and drive and Yvette steering him in the right direction. In fact Yvette says Peters drug court graduation is really her graduation, she the one that took him day after day after day.
They say look forward to good things happening and good things happen. I am so happy and content at the moment that I find it hard to grasp. So does Yvette, neurotically, she worries about small things and I tell her to not worry.
"Don't sweat the small stuff " . I say
"And it's all small stuff "
To silence her I list all the great things going on in our lives. She was a single Mum of five,when she moved to her newish home in Cranbourne. Alena and I went to the head of Public Housing and begged for her to be moved, she had left her violent junkie boyfriend, Father to her kids. A teenage rebellion relationship that had burnt out.
But she had to admit failure and move on, the kids the only part of the mess worth saving. All boys, aged 15, 10, 9, 7 and baby of 1. The baby born 5 weeks prem.
We moved her in, she and all boys sick with gastro but it was a new house a new start and now has been home for eight years. She said she would have been " stuffed " without the Ministry.
The house at first an apology to the neighbours who all owned theirs now rocks. We have attacked it with a passion and created a beautiful home for all. It's been sheer hard work, both Yvette and I sporting the same mysterious left wrist injury and sore backs. But she's seven months pregnant with her eighth child, after seven boys a longed for little girl.
We had such a chaotic life it is hard now to remember it all.
But now we have secure housing, a safe harbour, an important thing for a woman with kids, many kids, the older now helping the younger. The oldest four finding it hard to connect with their two new half brothers, babies to their teenage angst. But the oldest Alpha male is away till December, cooling his heels and he hates it. Good, maybe he won't be so stupid again.
The males overwhelmed Yvette with their relentless testosterone and now she rules as the Queen Bee because she is having a baby girl. She used to defer to the males, her younger partner Peter, her sons, feeling guilty she had exposed them all to her crazy ex partner. But not any more. Now she feels justified. She brought the boys up on her own as a single Mum. Now three are working, two at school and two toddlers, one who starts school next year.
She is proud of helping her partner Peter to gain his learners, help get him working, help him to mature, he had an incident two years ago when he was acting like an idiot and took ice, ended up in drug court and has spent the last year doing a drug course fir drug court. A lot if people say they would rather do prison than drug court.
Peter is due to graduate Thursday, passing in one year rather than two.he is their honour student, so young, so determined, so successful. He has raised five step sons for the last six years and although they hated him at first they have come to get along with him. The ten year old has only known Peter as his father figure most of his life. Peter the man preparing his lunch and never forgetting to buy his step son lemonade.
Peter lost his Mum, Vicky to cancer this year, she was only in her fifties as was his Dad who passed three years ago from a massive heart attack at work. Just went face down on the nature strip and was pronounced dead. Awful. The Mum never recovered and had cervical cancer diagnosed shortly after her beloved husbands death. We think of them together now. Peter now has only himself, as parent and his own little family of two boys and a girl to look forward to.
He's young, he has the energy and drive and Yvette steering him in the right direction. In fact Yvette says Peters drug court graduation is really her graduation, she the one that took him day after day after day.
