Previously at KorenFlex: after publishing our house for rent and getting fair demand, we signed up a contract for 11 months starting October 1st. About a month later, the expected tenants got an attractive job offer at China, and who are we to turn our nose up for a potential adventure (let alone be it in Asia)? So, once again, we published our house for rent, just to find out that the demand in August is not the same as in June. All families had already settled in for the upcoming school year and we found ourselves with a signed contract, but no tenants. Our kids are all signed-up for school/kindergartens for September and when the holiday season starts at the beginning of October, we will start to wander about – basecamp at grandma and grandpa, sea, desert, tents and sand.
Today’s episode: we scheduled a consulting appointment at 11 AM. In an astonishing accuracy that surprised even us (after all, the term “Shai time” was invented for a reason), the travelers’ clinic doors at Tiberias were opened at 11 sharp. We entered the wait area, where 6-8 youngsters are already waiting for their turn. Although we get the staff’s attention, no one tries to rush the process, as if they know something that we don’t. Everything moves in slow motion, except from our two boys’ hands and legs. Eyal, in an attempt to ease up the waiting of the other patients, takes the boys to wait outside the entrance door. After quite some time we are called to get in to meet the doctor. If it seemed compact and noisy in our presence so far… we all enter a tiny room. A table, a bed and three chairs. And our kids, like in a musical chairs game, move from a chair to the bed to another chair to my knees, all while the doctor speaks. Actually, he did not stop speaking at any point, explaining to Eyal, all the while with this non-stop noise, what would be the expiry of each vaccination and how many additional visits they will all require. And I am sitting in this dense and noisy chaos, admiring my son’s second grade teacher, as he couldn’t seat tight at one spot for more than 10 seconds during this all process. Running in my head the endless similar scenarios that we are about to encounter – airports, planes, lines, long trips, buses, trains, restaurants and so forth, envisioning how they are going to look like. Trying to tell myself that they are kids and this is OK and even getting doctor’s approval for that as he diagnoses their behavior as normal (as a serious answer to my question whether there is any chance to get some tranquilizer shot as well).
And then the shots began, four each. Today. One more next week and another two in a month. The eldest starts to cry in advance, as she already knows what it means. The second, who knows himself as one that gets through shots easily, cries after, realizing it was more painful than he had expected. The third joins the crying session but calms down soon after the shots end and the fourth screams all along – before, during and some after.
Even though I got four myself, none is expected to ease the pain of future events like the one we had today. But hey – next week there is another one coming…