Near impossible! Slowing yourself down when you’re feeling great is a pathetic concept for a person living with chronic illness.

It’s not like you ever go very fast or get the chance to feel the shackles are off. So when the free moments appear, it’s time to goooo!

This pic of me is in beautiful Daylesford. Last month Theo and I booked into the beautiful Lake House to celebrate our anniversary… in Australia. As you all know, we celebrated it in Italy this year also.

What’s with all the celebrations? Well, it was our 25th wedding anniversary! And, of course, let’s not forget the added celebration of surviving and somehow sticking together and loving each other even more with chronic illness – that’s no way to menage et toi! This conquest alone calls for a round-the-world trip if you ask me! Sadly, funds don’t stretch that far.

Back to Daylesford! For those who don’t know it, it’s a beautiful regional town in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range of Victoria in Australia. It hosts magnificent eateries, accommodations, spas, the brilliant and ever-inspiring Convent Gallery, Wombat Hill gardens and the world-renowned Lake House.

I can’t count the times I’ve been to Daylesford. It was already special to me but became even more special when I was invited to exhibit at the Convent Gallery in 2007 (yep, that year!).

I still have a few works on show at The Convent but had to take a huge gap when I could not make work through the years matters worsened. My exhibition was booked at the Convent before the fitball burst. It was devastating to have to change my plans. Little did I know then I’d be changing plans a lot more!

I struggled to get the work together for the exhibition – it was the third exhibition booked before the accident. It was upsetting to be getting these opportunities finally and to have to postpone them. It was horrifying when I eventually realised I wouldn’t be able to follow up on these opportunities and exhibit again… for a long time! And I was doing very well, the exhibition was a great success.

When we visited Daylesford, Theo and I had never stayed at the Lake House or dined there until this year! And once dining there, you fall in love and dream of returning to stay. So we did.

As the name suggests, the Lake House is situated on the beautiful boundary of Lake Daylesford. Several cabins and dining areas all face the beauty of the lake – it is breathtaking and rejuvenating.

Theo and I celebrated two lovely evenings that felt like a week. The food was not only special but went down so well. How can it not when it is all so carefully grown and sourced? Alla and Allan Wolf-Tasker are the creators of Lake House, and Alla is the culinary expert. Every care is taken when you are a guest, and it has been that way for three decades.

The walk around the lake is so easy. To make it around the whole lake, you cross a small road where I came into close contact with this sign.

As if a brain doesn’t carry on enough when you live with chronic illness, there’s an abundance of signage everywhere insinuating and hinting at you as well! Gets quite tiring to always be talking to yourself and guiding yourself through limitations, ‘have-to’s, don’t-do’s, must-do’s and should-do’s…

But I thought this sign was a bit fun.

Remember, if you live with a chronic illness, you just must slow down to pace up!