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Saturday, Day 8

Sleep was sweet last night. I went to bed at 9:00 after reading a while and sipping a cup of green tea. Pat was already in bed. In spite of the fact that I awoke three times in the night with the feeling that I was falling out of bed, 5:30 a.m. found me feeling greatly refreshed. Of course, that did not stop me from going for a nice cup of coffee!

When Pat and I made the bed, we discovered that the mattress was hanging over the box spring a good 6″ on my side! It’s no wonder I felt as though I was falling out of bed! Pat had sat on the side of the bed the night before, and it very likely shifted then.

After breakfast Kawal went to the bank, but he said he would return shortly to take us shopping and sight-seeing. However, the day did not quite turn out as planned. He was gone a long time, and by the time he returned, we had finished tiling the shower walls and had gotten the new shower floor almost completely done.

When Kawal walked in, I noticed a new dressing on one of his toes, which had been bleeding. Kawal told us he went to the doctor after stopping at the bank, and the doctor did not like the looks of his toe. Kawal suffers from diabetic neuropathy, so he could not feel the pain from the infection that had set in. He didn’t feel the two shots of anesthetic either. So the doctor cut away the bad nail and flesh, dressed it, gave him some antibiotics, and another med for neuropathy, then told him to return next week so he can monitor the progress. He also told him, “No more sandals. You must wear the diabetic shoes at all times.” Kawal was none too thrilled about that. I wouldn’t be either.

When Pat and I ran out of mixed thin-set, we stopped work for the day, cleaned our tools, then refreshed ourselves and changed our clothes. With the shower out of commission, this involved another sponge bath out of a bucket of water, and a shampoo at the kitchen sink. When we were ready, we all piled into the car and made our way into town.

It was raining hard, so the sight-seeing would have to wait for another day. But it was a good day for shopping, so off we went to the Trincity Mall, the biggest mall in Trinidad. And believe me, it is big, with two levels, a food court on each level, and more shops than I could count. First we went to the food court for lunch, and then Kawal guided us to a souvenir shop. There we picked up a few simple things for the children. I had intended to get gifts for a few other people as well, but they proved to be a little harder to shop for, and we needed to go because Kawal wasn’t feeling well. Hopefully we’ll get to go back.

On our way back out of the mall, we saw Mr. & Mrs. Santa—Caribbean style. They both were wearing flip-flops and leis with their not-quite-typical Santa and Mrs. Santa outfits. Evidently it’s Christmas in July. Ordinarily I’m as anti-Santa as they come, but I made an exception for this charming couple, and asked Pat to take my picture while I posed with them. There was also a table where girls wearing elf hats were entertaining the children with face painting—and doing a right good job.

A little further down we came upon a booth where folks were selling chocolate bars and hot cocoa blocks produced right here in Trinidad. They also had a model “cocoa house,” to demonstrate how the beans are roasted in the sun. I took a picture of the cocoa house and bought some of the chocolate to take home after receiving three samples. Yum!

Back at home, Kawal lay down to rest, Pat found a comfortable place to read his book, and I got busy cleaning the house and sanctuary. For many years, when we lived in Virginia, it had been my job to clean the church, and today’s work brought back fond memories. I do love to clean, especially when I can make a difference.

Well before dinner, all the work was done, and I too got to read a bit more of my book. After dinner we sat and talked a while again, then we went to bed to be fresh for church tomorrow morning.