An unexpected start
Tuesday… interesting start to the day.
I was woken by the sounds of what I recognised as Jack doing exercises in the hotel ensuite bathroom. He’s trying not to wake me (which is sweet) but this is a very old hotel (pub) and the floorboards creak. My eyes drift closed again and, (I’m guessing) a few minutes later, I’m woken a second time by a crash and a thud. I sit bolt upright in bed and call out: “Are you OK?” No response. I assume he’s knocked something onto the floor. Then… some sounds which indicate he is not OK so I leap up and carefully open the bathroom door. He’s on the floor and he’s hurt.
I think I mentioned that Jack is currently keenly following a guy on YouTube and doing a daily, hour-long workout session in the early evenings. Yesterday evening’s session was frustratingly disrupted by I.T. problems so I’m guessing he’s was trying to make up for lost time this morning. He’s committed to doing this fitness program and he wants to honour his commitment to himself. Admirable but… there are limits.
He said he was doing star jumps, felt dizzy, held onto the basin and then went down… hard.
I survey the damage and get him onto his bed to lie down for a few minutes while I check him over in more detail. Nothing broken. He’s bumped his forehead but not hard thankfully. It flashes through my mind that maybe he should be checked out by a professional. He’s got a graze down one arm and a shallow cut under his chin. Holy moly. I retrieve the most basic of first aid things which I always carry with me… alcohol wipes, antiseptic cream, bandaids. Thankfully, the cut under the chin is not deep. A bandaid will do the job. I ask him a series of questions to make sure his brain is fully functional… all good. I reckon we’re fine.
He’s mostly shocked and understandably subdued. It’s a good learning experience. A little later, I thank him for being considerate and we have a quiet word about exercising in a suitable place… not in a confined space and surrounded by hard surfaces. Life with a teen.
Yesterday (Monday), we had a nice relaxed start to our week in Harrogate. The hotel brekky finishes at 9:30am and I was tipping it would be pretty good as hotel breakfasts go. I reminded Jack that we’re now in the land of the cooked breakfast and he should allow sufficient time to enjoy it. We three are operating on Italian summer time so we’re probably two hours out of whack. I don’t mean there’s an actual time different between Italy and the UK (OK, one hour). It’s a cultural thing. We’re used to late starts and late dinner and bed. It suits the hot Italian summer climate.
I was right about brekky… it’s a full English with all the possible trimmings. There’s none of the cold sliced meets and cheese which the Germans enjoy or the coffee and cake and sweet pastries which the Italians like to have for breakfast. I will never understand the latter.
After brekky, we have a wander through town and find a very nice place to book a table for dinner. Jack returns to the hotel room to practice some flute before we meet again for lunch (battered fish and chips for him!) and then it’s off to register for the Flute Festival at 1:30pm.
The flute program is taking place at the Harrogate Ladies College which is a boarding school and closed for the holidays so we have it to ourselves. The other participants in the program are mostly quite a bit older than Jack and his friend, Eli, who is 11. Jack and Eli met at the Galway Flute Festival in Lucerne a couple of months ago. It’s lovely for me to see Eli’s mum again too and to have the time to sit down together and talk at length… which we do.
Eli’s mum is keen to enjoy High Tea at the famous Betty’s Tea Rooms so, having handed our sons over to the program organisers, we head back into town for a treat and talk all afternoon. Wonderful.
Meals are included in the program fees for the Flute Festival and several people are boarding on site at the Harrogate Ladies College but not everyone. Jack and I preferred to have our own space. This evening, there is the option of remaining at school for dinner with the other participants and then there’s a quiz game to break the ice for the boarders and help everyone to get to know each other.
When we ladies return to the school in the early evening to check-in with the boys, the flute school sessions have already finished and the participants are starting to have dinner. My fella is waiting for me so he can do his evening workout back at the hotel. I’m looking forward to dinner with him so I can hear his impressions of the flute program.
Jack and I dined at The Ivy right in the centre of Harrogate which was very nice. Great decor. Very good service. Unfortunately, my fellow diner over-ate and wasn’t feeling great as we walked back to our hotel.
The teen thing kicks-in again and, after a really lovely evening, things go downhill because he’s tired and not managing his behaviour towards his mum… that person with whom he can and must be able to be his fully self-expressed self. Still, I’m not happy… at all.
Jack is a beautiful person in every way and… so privileged. As his parent, I want to help him learn to appreciate the opportunities available to him. (Don’t worry… he doesn’t read this blog and, if he ever does, he’ll survive.)
As I get ready for bed, I decide he could do with a reality check. I respectfully inform him that he needs to get himself up and out the door in the morning, he can walk the 15 minutes to the Ladies College and dine with his fellow program participants on Tuesday evening. I am taking the day off.
Of course, that all went out the window after the fainting incident this morning so I’ve driven him to College. Full disclosure: I thought I should inform the organisers about the fainting thing so they can keep an eye on him. I figure… if I was them, and in charge of Jack today, I would want to know he’d passed-out this morning. I asked them to be super discreet about it and reassured them that I’m confident he’s fine.
Right… there’s still time for me to regroup with a second cup of coffee in the breakfast room back at the hotel.
Time to recalibrate.
How do I want to spend today?
Oh you are a good Mum
A very patient Mum
A very responsible Mum
And it sounds like you have a gorgeous normal teenager.
Brava Mumma!
Jack won't be doing star jumps in the bathroom for a while. He seems very dedicated to his fitness regime. Not sure it's worth risking his life for and giving mum a heart attack.