So we had a friend moving into the house for the six weeks we were away. When we go away for such a long time I worry about leaving my boys, Nelson and Dennis, with a cat sitter. We also had another family friend who knows the boys inside out, understands their quirks and foibles, their habits and hates, coming in to feed them and look after their welfare. So between these two young men I was pretty sure the boys would be very well looked after.
The thing is with Will, is that we don't really know him as such. We've got to know him through one of our favourite bars, he's a waiter there. No, he's more than a waiter or serving staff, he's more senior than that. But he's really nice. I've always been drawn to him; he reminds me of Ben. He's actually a huge fan of Asking and was very excited to meet Danny's mum and dad, pretty unimpressed with us though! Haha! And whilst the world was waiting for the new vocalist to be announced, every time we saw him he would give me a list of names that he thought just might be the new frontman; in fairness he mentioned Denis a few times.
Ben and Bex were a bit put out by this though. 'Whose Will?'...'Why is he moving in?'...'what if he steals all your stuff?'...'what if he loses the cats?'... They could not understand why we had a 'random' moving in. Will is now known as the 'random' in our family. But I just knew it was the right thing to do. He was sharing a sofa with another guy in a friend's apartment, which is not an ideal way for anyone to live. I was surprised when I heard he was sleeping on a sofa but when I heard that he shared it I was horrified. What mother wouldn't be. I remember sitting with Rick and commenting that we should let Will move in for the summer. At first, quite rightly, he was hesitant, with all the same doubts as Ben and Bex, but as we talked it through he could see the sense in what I was suggesting. Our usual cat sitter is great but only goes in twice a day to feed them and give them a quick fuss. Dennis is prone to anxiety and depression, and starts to eat random plastic items when he's stressed, leading to a few abdominal surgeries and a near death experience last summer as he went into a rapid decline after eating a cork. He's a rescue cat and very attached to me and hates being left alone for long periods. Will moving in seemed like the perfect answer. Regular cat sister to look after them and Will to give them much needed company whilst we were away for six weeks.
So Will moved in the day Rick left for the UK. Apart from leaving his bedroom door open on occasion and giving our old boy, Nelson, the opportunity to poo and wee on his bed, all three were very happy together. When we returned it was to two very happy and content cats. Dennis felt his usual need of filling us in on what had happened over the summer very vocally at 4am but otherwise they were perfectly happy.
This brings me back to one of my ongoing topics, paying it forward. When Ben left Dubai two amazing families took him in and treated them like he was one of their own. He found himself a family in both the Uk and America. These amazing people are my very good friends Mr & Mrs Worsnop, and my beautiful Sam's parents, Mr & Mrs Cassaro. Without these incredible people I have no doubt that Ben would not be where he is today. More than all they gave Ben though, they gave me huge peace of mind. Letting me know that my son was being watched over and looked after; doing all the things that I was too far away to do properly. But they all went above and beyond that, they loved him too. It was bad enough when Ben left for the Uk but when he announced he was heading to the US my heart sank. Who was going to look after him there for me? So on two occasions I've written an email explaining who I am and that I'm very much a hands on mum but my son has a will of his own and has a habit of finding himself a new family wherever he goes; that he's not abandoned and unloved.
By allowing Will the use of our home during the summer I felt that I could offer him something that he was missing, and perhaps make his mum's heart a bit lighter. And it turns out that he spent the six weeks thinking his life through and realised that he couldn't continue living like he had been; that a bed is indeed a luxury, as is having a bathroom that isn't shared amongst so many people; that having your own space to retreat to is a very necessary part of life and our emotional well being. Will has moved into a new apartment; he has his own bedroom. So I have paid it forward. As he was thanking us profusely for the time spent in our home, I stopped him and just asked him to pay it forward himself at some point in his life. I am blessed that two families 'adopted' my beautiful Benj, so the least I could do is offer this lovely young man a home.
A win-win situation all round.
The thing is with Will, is that we don't really know him as such. We've got to know him through one of our favourite bars, he's a waiter there. No, he's more than a waiter or serving staff, he's more senior than that. But he's really nice. I've always been drawn to him; he reminds me of Ben. He's actually a huge fan of Asking and was very excited to meet Danny's mum and dad, pretty unimpressed with us though! Haha! And whilst the world was waiting for the new vocalist to be announced, every time we saw him he would give me a list of names that he thought just might be the new frontman; in fairness he mentioned Denis a few times.
Ben and Bex were a bit put out by this though. 'Whose Will?'...'Why is he moving in?'...'what if he steals all your stuff?'...'what if he loses the cats?'... They could not understand why we had a 'random' moving in. Will is now known as the 'random' in our family. But I just knew it was the right thing to do. He was sharing a sofa with another guy in a friend's apartment, which is not an ideal way for anyone to live. I was surprised when I heard he was sleeping on a sofa but when I heard that he shared it I was horrified. What mother wouldn't be. I remember sitting with Rick and commenting that we should let Will move in for the summer. At first, quite rightly, he was hesitant, with all the same doubts as Ben and Bex, but as we talked it through he could see the sense in what I was suggesting. Our usual cat sitter is great but only goes in twice a day to feed them and give them a quick fuss. Dennis is prone to anxiety and depression, and starts to eat random plastic items when he's stressed, leading to a few abdominal surgeries and a near death experience last summer as he went into a rapid decline after eating a cork. He's a rescue cat and very attached to me and hates being left alone for long periods. Will moving in seemed like the perfect answer. Regular cat sister to look after them and Will to give them much needed company whilst we were away for six weeks.
So Will moved in the day Rick left for the UK. Apart from leaving his bedroom door open on occasion and giving our old boy, Nelson, the opportunity to poo and wee on his bed, all three were very happy together. When we returned it was to two very happy and content cats. Dennis felt his usual need of filling us in on what had happened over the summer very vocally at 4am but otherwise they were perfectly happy.
This brings me back to one of my ongoing topics, paying it forward. When Ben left Dubai two amazing families took him in and treated them like he was one of their own. He found himself a family in both the Uk and America. These amazing people are my very good friends Mr & Mrs Worsnop, and my beautiful Sam's parents, Mr & Mrs Cassaro. Without these incredible people I have no doubt that Ben would not be where he is today. More than all they gave Ben though, they gave me huge peace of mind. Letting me know that my son was being watched over and looked after; doing all the things that I was too far away to do properly. But they all went above and beyond that, they loved him too. It was bad enough when Ben left for the Uk but when he announced he was heading to the US my heart sank. Who was going to look after him there for me? So on two occasions I've written an email explaining who I am and that I'm very much a hands on mum but my son has a will of his own and has a habit of finding himself a new family wherever he goes; that he's not abandoned and unloved.
By allowing Will the use of our home during the summer I felt that I could offer him something that he was missing, and perhaps make his mum's heart a bit lighter. And it turns out that he spent the six weeks thinking his life through and realised that he couldn't continue living like he had been; that a bed is indeed a luxury, as is having a bathroom that isn't shared amongst so many people; that having your own space to retreat to is a very necessary part of life and our emotional well being. Will has moved into a new apartment; he has his own bedroom. So I have paid it forward. As he was thanking us profusely for the time spent in our home, I stopped him and just asked him to pay it forward himself at some point in his life. I am blessed that two families 'adopted' my beautiful Benj, so the least I could do is offer this lovely young man a home.
A win-win situation all round.