A Thorn among the Roses - The year 2021

Dear old gal, here you are again reflecting on the year 2021!
Was it all you dreamed of, or are you still saying Fings ain't neva gonna be the same again?

Your search for those fragrant roses bore some fruit and you found many in the most unexpected places; some however had real prickly thorns that you did not expect at all!

You encountered a couple of those thorns early in the year when Mom Lily fractured her ankle when The Boot is on the other Foot.

Nursing duties that were part of the new you did not initially stop you from doing foodie posts, which is what you really enjoy, but they are more time-consuming than many believe. I don't think you saw that one coming old gal!

Soon after this, another very prickly thorn that all your South African friends know only too well as Loadshedding meant being subjected to planned electricity outages which were/are a real pain in the butt!
This was only the beginning as many more blackouts occurred and are still happening; no wonder a favourite practical gift this Christmas was rechargeable emergency lights!

Remember how you quite by chance stumbled upon many variants of roses when you started Hive Silver Bloggers in April; those roses were in the form of some amazing bloggers and I'm also referring to the guys here, hope you don't mind as you certainly are not the thorns among the roses;)

This new journey also took you right out of your comfort zone, but here a very fragrant rose called Silver Flower came to your rescue.

You put your heart and soul into starting the #silverbloggers, and so your biggest passion, food blogging, sadly took a backseat.

However, being a Silver Blogger is an exciting journey as you learned how people from all over the world live their lives, supplement their income once they reach retirement, or start planning.
One thing you appreciated once again was that $Hive is very real and helps many people make ends meet in this new world we find ourselves in.

Once it felt kind of safe to go places again, not surprisingly, you ran to the sea with the ocean breeze and the sound of the waves, but also went inland to another favourite, the Valley of a Thousand Hills with its quaint little shops and eateries.

The biggest thorn was when you suddenly experienced frightening seizures but then learned a bit about music therapy as you shared Mozart & Brain Storms with your fellow Hivers and you now have to take medication to prevent this. The meds are working, but you've been left with a metallic smell, so of course, cooking and baking just ain't the same if everything smells weird, which meant less foodie posts!

You of course were hoping Mom Lily would see her 90th birthday in September as she's been getting frailer by the day, but she thankfully made it!

Another highlight of the year was that surprise Drakensberg breakaway with the older son and his lady which turned out to be just what the doctor ordered! You and hubby surprised the young ones by almost making it to the Blue Grotto on a long hike that took you through the forest, across streams, and up into the mountains, but you & hubby stopped at the last waterfall before the more perilous ascent, as time was catching up and the old silvers were much slower, so the young ones continued to this special place while you sat and enjoyed the many bird calls and the sound of water flowing!

All in all, you must admit there were more roses than thorns in 2021, or are you just being your usual self who sees the world through rose-tinted glasses?

MAY ALL YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE IN 2022!

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Original Content by @lizelle
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