The alarming telephone call came early in the morning; a tearful voice telling me the unbelievable:
We need help, the lady who works for you was run over this morning when crossing the road!
My heart immediately jumped into my throat;
'You mean Cynthia?'
Yes, I'm her brother.
Ok, so I know very well that there is no brother and I'm starting to have doubts about what is really happening here!
Hubby's phoning Cynthia but there's no answer so I think perhaps something did happen. It could be her cousin as it's customary in the African culture to call a cousin a brother or sister; I'm beside myself by now!
Hubby's phone rings soon thereafter; it's Cynthia, alive and well and totally unaware of what we've just heard.
The caller cut the call when I tell him that Cynthia is on the other phone!
Speaking to a friend later on, I hear that something similar happened to her neighbour and the so-called 'family' needed money to arrange a funeral but when she asked to see a death certificate, she never heard from the caller again!
How sick is that, playing on people's feelings hoping the employer will fall for it as most of the domestic workers are still on an extended year end break due to the horrid second Covid wave we're experiencing!
This call really unsettled me as Cynthia has become part of our family, and made me realize just how much she means to all of us here.
Beautiful on the inside and outside;)
Bongikosi came back after his year-end break on his family's farm; what a blessing!
He lives on our property so doesn't have the threat of public transport where they often travel in overcrowded taxis, despite the stricter regulations!
Then I received a really nice online booking for a single guest for 9 nights; but it turned out to be someone who needed to quarantine as her son-in-law was diagnosed with Covid.
Sadly I had to cancel that booking as we cannot risk having an elderly guest here who may be bringing Covid to our little bnb and with Mom Lily at 89, that was a definite no-no!
Bookings are at an all-time low now that the beaches are still closed; we fortunately have the regular trainees back but our small unit has been standing empty for a good couple of days already!
I needed to lose myself in the kitchen after all these disturbances and as Mom Lily had been pestering me for days to make Milk Tart, which she wanted to help with, we had flour everywhere as I also made a loaf of Wholemeal Bread and a batch of Oat & Peanut Butter Cookies:)
Baking therapy was just what I needed to clear my head!
Mom's tiny little body still is in top form, but her balance is getting REALLY bad.
She has an Acoustic Neuroma which is slowly getting larger, causing more pressure on the lower brain and the only thing this affects, is her balance; most frustrating as she is fiercely independent!
Pastry cases she can still make;)
I had to fill the tarts with a fluffy white custard filling which is sprinkled with Cinnamon; Milk Tart is a real traditional South African teatime treat.
The Pomelo's are coming along nicely but it will be quite a while before they will be ripe enough to give us our daily dose of Vitamin C.
The son keeps on sending masks and Vitamins; this time pure Silk Masks and I must say they are super comfy!
Tomatoes were really looking good and we thought the marauding monkeys would have no interest in them, but they must be hungry with both our Papaya trees both dead and gone. They took one bite from the healthiest looking Tomatoes, obviously did not like it as they were still on the plants.
We quickly picked the rest of the larger tomatoes before they get to those as well!
Our food shopping is now done online only, thanks to the son who insisted I download the App on my phone; what a blessing and time-saver this has been, so thank you Dean!
Contact-less deliveries doesn't stop us chatting briefly from a distance; the guys are getting to know us now.
It costs nothing to say thank you, a kind word and try to smile behind the mask; but these people work really hard getting the orders out within 60 minutes!
That was the week just gone by, full of ups and downs, our two trainee guests are great guys, we're all still healthy so are truly thankful for our blessings!
Do you know this Badge?
It says "Thank you for partnering with the Papillon Foundation by participating in the
Weekly Hive Charity Giveaway."
Do you want this Badge?
If you like this badge and if you want to help too, you can learn more about @combination and the badge in their blog post:
Some Exciting News! Badge release!
Why not join Hive RIGHT HERE and become part of this amazing community!
Original Content by @lizelle
Thank you for stopping by
Copyright @lizelle – All Rights Reserved
Banner created by @derangedvisions
Nice post, it is just sad that there are so many people trying to scam one out of one's hard earned money. All of the best with your BnB for this year, which is of to a very rocky start.
Thank you @rynow, yes we were really shocked that people are now trying this to scam others. Perhaps some people do fall for it as many living in rural areas are unreachable when they go home so one can't check. They knew my friend's neighbour's employee's name! In both instances they phoned our landlines, all I can think is that someone at UIF possibly is connected as they would have those details!
I'm the eternal optimist and I'm sure our bnb will survive as we're small. Just scary how many people want to book 2 weeks for a single guest right now, obviously to self-isolate as they're definitely not for business bookings!
Take care @rynow!
Ek hoop sommer sulke mense kry n kramp in hulle alie... I am so glad that Cynthia is ok. Boy oh boy, you had a week indeed.
I used to have a divine milk tart crust recipe, I looked for it a while back and couldn't find it - have tried a few others since, but they just don't seem to cut it.
Anyway - I wish you tons of blessings and love for the year ahead!
Janee, ek voel dieselfde!
It really has been an awful week but thank goodness it's ending on a better note;)
I did a post on the Milk Tart on the old Steemit, you can check the LINK for the pastry recipe if you like. We usually make a couple of pastry cases, stack them on paper plates and freeze them to fill with as needed. It's nice for Lemon Meringue Pie and many other fillings as well.
Dankie vir die kuiertjie en n goeie jaar vir jou ook;)
That's horrible! I'm glad Cynthia is fine!
What does Bongikosi do?
Yeah, I agree with the cancellation of the booking! I'm glad you found out early enough that the reservation was COVID-related.
Awww... so sweet. She still makes them pastry cases. Is your mom's name Lily? Baked Alaska. That tart filling reminds me of Baked Alaska.
Send some masks over here, hehehe.
Pomelos and tomatoes are both looking good!
Hmmm... grocery shopping online can be such a convenience!
Great read! Thanks for the update. I haven't been to your blog for three weeks!!!
It sure was such a relief hearing Cynthia's voice but I was really shaken and shocked that someone could do something like that!
Bongikosi came to us before we started our bnb; his Dad and uncle were working here part time for years and he just arrived one day saying he'd like to work for us. We reluctantly let him work once a week as we didn't really need him at the time. He's now become not only a skilled gardener, but also learnt many diy skills, how to do concrete work, and even housekeeping. Bongikosi has turned into a real gem and I believe he really is indispensable, same as Cynthia, we'd hate to lose them but would be happy if they found permanent jobs in a large company as we are semi-retired and worry about his and Cynthia's future when we finally sell and go down the coast to a retirement village as planned!
They are both happy here as we try to remunerate our staff well but it's still not a permanent solution.
We left him in charge when Cynthia came on holiday with us to help mom, yes her name is Lily (Anna Elizabeth). My gran always told how her aunt used to rock her to sleep, singing 'She's a Lily of the Valley...'
Yes those masks, medical grade, cloth masks with filters and now even Silk, but our son is concerned as we have guests coming and going all the time.
Baked Akaska? Now I'm curious, heard of it many times but never had it! Will check in with Granny Google;)
Thanks for the visit @silversaver888!
Dear @lizelle,
I hired a live-in girl-Friday, as I am not yet back to my old self until I am confident that I won't faint or something like that. I don't have to worry about her, should I let her go.
It will be hard to let go of either Bongikosi or Cynthia. But it will not be for a while before you finally sell and go to a retirement village!
You will make a Baked Alaska in no time. It is ice cream on a cake base covered with meringue and browned in the oven (or with a torch).
I love visiting!
🥰🌺🤙 !ENGAGE
ENGAGEtokens.It's wonderful to "meet" some of the people in your life! Blessings to you and those around you! 💗