Yes, I’m still here. . .

Late, later, latest update: Here it’s the shortest day of the year. Longest day in the northern hemisphere.

Of course Malcolm’s heart surgery is the perfect excuse for the lack of an update. So I’m not even going to BEGIN to apologise this time. Hello, again!

For the past few months, since my return form the States in early April I have been sharing in Malcolm’s recuperation, which is now complete. It’s been a very pleasant life of lattes and little excursions and good company. I have been calm and have rested and have avoided all but essential work.

When Malcolm and I go for our daily long walk I’m the one puffing and panting which makes me wonder if I too need a quadruple by-pass. More likely is the probability that I need to return to my exercise classes for the middle-aged unfit which I paid for in total at the beginning of the year. I haven’t been to a single class yet, in 2000! OK OK. I know what you’re thinking: SLOB. And you’re right. I’m off to Europe and the States today, thank heaven, so I can’t start my exercise classes now until at least July 3rd. Hurrah.

Ten years ago, Possum Magic was made into a gorgeous musical for little kids. To celebrate the occasion, Possum Magic~The Musical is currently on a national 10th anniversary tour of Australia. Garry Ginivan, the writer/producer/director, told me this week that the show is having its best response ever. After all this time, 17 years since its publication, it’s wildly gratifying. (I still can’t believe I wrote that book. I’m not glamorous enough!) The show has to be coming to a place near you soon, if you live anywhere in Australia. It’s even going to Kalgoorlie. Kalgoorlie! GREAT. Watch your local press for details.

My latest boo: Harriet, You’ll Drive Me Wild (published by Harcourt in the USA in April; and in paperback in Australia in October 2000 by HodderHeadline) is doing amazingly well. I never expected it to drive people wild. It’s a little book, not a grand book. It didn’t set out to conquer the world but, hey. . . It’s about a mother finally yelling at her kid after having tried hard to keep her temper all day long. In its first month of publication in the US Harriet sold 20,000 copies. I guess that means a whole lot of mums (and ‘moms’) are yelling at their kids right now, and are very relieved to find that other mothers do the same. Children laugh over it too, so it must be working on different levels in a way I never expected when I wrote it. Am I thrilled? You bet. And surprised.

I’m off to London tomorrow briefly and then to Paris for two nights and a day to see Chloë who is back at UNESCO. In May she went on holiday to Cameroon, had a brilliant time but fell ill almost as soon as she returned home. It turned out to be severe salmonella poisoning and she was on a drip in hospital for six days. I was frantic. I had Malcolm all primed to fly to Paris (he speaks fluent French and I don’t) but she recovered before Malcolm got on to the plane. Whew. It has been three months of excitement that I could have done without.

The rest of my family is fine. My dad, however, is finding it increasingly difficult to feed himself and he rarely speaks, but in his own world I don’t believe he is unhappy. My mum visits him at lunchtime every day. I visit every evening, Wednesday through to Sunday, and my sister Alison goes on Monday and Tuesday nights. So he knows he’s very loved, and the home he’s in is divine. All the old people are treated with great dignity.

And so time passes. I wish you happiness and peace till we meet again.

Love,

Mem Fox xxx