Boredom

I’m having trouble with the computer today so if anything comprehensible appears here it will be a minor miracle. I suspect a whole lot of programmes are being updated interfering with my use of the machine. Or maybe it’s just another one of my off days. It never ceases to amaze me that I do exactly the same things one day, or so it seems to me, and everything behaves perfectly, but on another there just seems to be one hurdle after another to jump to get anywhere. Today is definitely the latter sort of day. It’s taken me 3 attempts just to get booted up and ready to go.

Yesterday was a rather sobering day. We went along to the golf club, where we joined Fran & Den. Their first bit of news was that Mrs B, the retired headmistress, was laid up. Some years ago she had an accident resulting in an ulcer on her leg. It took months to heal up. Apparently she’d accidently scraped her leg, more or less on the same spot, and now it wouldn’t stop bleeding. She’d had the nurse round. Even so, in less than an hour the blood was once more oozing through. She’d been given instructions to rest up as much as possible, which was why she hadn’t joined the others for lunch.

As the afternoon passed, we couldn’t help noticing Fran closing her eyes & nodding off. It suddenly dawned upon me she was chronically bored. Whenever we spoke to her, directing questions at her, involved her in our enthusiasms of the moment i.e. our plans for the garden, she brightened up & became lively. Whenever Den set off on one of his long, often repeated stories, her eyes closed. It had never occurred to me before that part of her spiritual absence has just been sheer boredom rather than a medical problem.

They’ve not been married that long, nearly 4 years. Den lived as her lodger for many years when her first husband was alive. The three of them went on holiday together, were more often than not in company with each other, and so she must surely have known what Den was like before the wedding. It just seems so sad that someone could be so bored with life that they are literally shutting down before your very eyes. It’s all the sadder when you see the looks of total adoration for Fran in Den’s eyes.

Part of the problem undoubtedly is Fran’s failing physical health. Her mobility has declined noticeably, not entirely surprising since she is now in her 80s & she had a rather poor hip replacement done years ago, long before we knew her. She’s had several falls in recent years, not breaking anything but seriously bruising herself. She’s never been a great one for hobbies & crafts. She loves seeing people & shops but the latter she is no longer really up to doing. Her whole incentive for life seems to be dying.

Usually I regard boredom as the pause that spurs you on to find something new to get involved in. There are so many potential aspects of life & thought to interest you. The world is full of wonder. You just need to choose a direction to explore. Even if you can’t physically cope with doing too much, that’s no reason not to do a little & to think & learn something new, to observe the little everyday changes. Boredom soon disappears then.