Armed Forces Day

OK, that's the MS update out of the way for a while. Now I can write about interesting things! Like holidays.

I had four weeks of holiday. Lucky me. My son was home for the first week of it. That's when the UK 'Armed Forces Day' took place. He was keen to go along and as his parents, we wanted to go and support him too. It was a great day out and I only wished it had been advertised better as a lot of friends and contacts said they would have come 'had they known'. The first problem was that a lot of standing would be involved. Susie thought of this first and declared "We'd better take the wheelchair."

"Oh no" thought I, "not the wheelchair!" I don't know about you, but, the thought of 'giving in to MS' and sitting in a wheelchair is not a nice thought. I had to admit, though, that it was a practical idea and I overcame my pride and agreed we should put it in the car. I just prayed that I wouldn't meet anyone I knew - which I did. Sigh!

So, we duly arrived and parked somewhere near. I then had to get into the chair and be pushed to George Square. The next problem was that there were about three layers of people around the perimeter fencing and, in the chair, there was no way I would see anything. Not a problem when you've got a big uniformed paratrooper with you: " 'Scuse me, please! Make some room here - oh, thanks very much." I was now at the front - brakes on! There were marching bands, soldiers, marines and RAF. There were veterans who were presented with badges of recognition and the Last Post was played. A Nimrod flew over and, other than a brief disturbance my some thoughtless protesters (they caused a lot of noise just after the service had been remembering the fallen soldiers from all conflicts), it all passed of very well. Susie tried on a parachute and then took a photo of our soldier son with a 91 year old veteran which ended up in our local paper and on the BBC.

Click picture to see full size.
After the proceedings were over, we went for a pizza and had a good natter. It was after that, when Susie was enjoying the freedom of getting me moved quickly from A to B and then to C, we took a little diversion along the lower part of Buchanan Street in Glasgow, which is a pedestrian area. Loads of people and, of course, a former dental student who looked down on me in the wheelchair "Oh, hello Mr Sharkey!" Cringe.