Well, I’m on the home stretch now; the finishing line very much in sight.

Nothing is quite as expected, though. From early on I had made my wish to die at home be known but here I am in a bed in the Alexandra Unit, which provides palliative care and is the nearest thing we have in Dumfries & Galloway region to hospice provision.

Anyway, the change of plans was my choice. At home, although they would take every possible care to have the drugs I would need when the pain became more severe, I wasn’t going to have someone 24/7 with the key to the locked cabinet. I didn’t want to behave all undignified if I couldn’t get my drugs!

I was mentally preparing some funny stories to share with you (like the woman who wanted a cleaning job but not when she was a bit busy near Christmas)…

Zamenhof Day (Esperanto: Zamenhofa Tago, Polish: Dzień Zamenhofa), also called Esperanto Book Day, is celebrated on 15 December, the birthday of Esperanto creator L. L. Zamenhof.It is the most widely celebrated day in Esperanto culture. On this day, Esperantists hold information sessions and cultural gatherings to promote literature in Esperanto.

The history of celebrating Esperanto on Zamenhof’s birthday can be traced back to 17 December 1878, when at a birthday party for his 19th birthday he presented to his friends his Lingwe uniwersala, the first version of his international language. By 1887, this language had evolved into what is now recognized as Esperanto when he published the Unua Libro. 15 December previously used to be also known as Esperanto Day,but that is now celebrated on 26 July, the day Unua Libro was published.

15 December 2009 marked 150 years since Zamenhof’s…

When Valerie, one of my followers, commented on how much she liked the old Christmas cards in a recent post, it led me on a trip down Memory Lane. I was reminded of the photo Christmas cards that were so popular during the 1940’s, 1950’s and 1960’s. I will be posting the Christmas Cards Marian and Lad sent out each year as their children grew up. Some of you will recognize this type of card, they may be unfamiliar to others. Enjoy them each day for the rest of the month.

As you can see, there are only three of us, but Lynn was due in December.

This is the standard form of Christmas cards for many years to come.

Tomorrow, another Christmas Card, this one from 1949.

Judy Guion