Tag Archives: life

You Must Remember This

I’ve been thinking about kissing recently, in part because of a story I’m writing.  We give kisses, and we receive them.  “En amour, il y a toujours celui qui donne les baisers et celui qui tend la joue” as the … Continue reading

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Presence

The children were with us for Christmas. Our son left, as planned, on Boxing Day. Our daughter, however, had an unexpected gap in her work schedule and was also a little unwell. We asked, tentatively, whether she had to go? … Continue reading

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Past Imperfect

I have returned to sorting family photographs. There are too many for my comfort. Stashed in a half-sorted manner in a combination of crates and boxes, they snag at my mind burdensomely. A task not completed. A mess unsorted. A treasure … Continue reading

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So long as we can breathe or eyes can see

Mum’s friend, Joyce, is in hospital and I visited her yesterday.  Mum and Joyce. They met, and served together, in the Second World War and they kept in touch for the rest of their lives. They lived 240 miles apart … Continue reading

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Stepping out

On holiday for a few days, in Paris. 5 days and so I have 5 novels. This feels about right. Fewer than five makes me anxious. These are holiday reads, nothing long or challenging, and I am quite a fast reader – … Continue reading

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Turtles all the way down

I returned to my therapist last weekend. I feel I can write that in an expectation that you, dear reader, will respond with an ‘oh, yes’ of recognition. But I do want at least to try to check my privilege … Continue reading

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Changing the Matrix

We became ensnarled in a Bank Holiday tailback on Monday, just north of Cambridge. We were about two-thirds of the way home after a weekend at a Folk Festival, the pace slowed and the forest of red tail-lights appeared. I … Continue reading

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Failure

Yesterday I felt a failure. The feeling is unpleasant, heavy and upsetting. It brought tears and held me immobile and helpless for a while.  I don’t often feel a failure. I realise that I put significant energies into avoiding the feeling. I like … Continue reading

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Hacked off

After a few years of ignoring the flaking paint and a pervasive drop in temperature as one enters our kitchen, we have taken a deep breath, drawn ourselves up to our full height as responsible adults, and are “having the … Continue reading

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Resolution

There was a period of time when I tried to encourage the family to make New Year’s Resolutions. These were modest in ambition, often the usual ideas of eating more healthily or exercising more. I also liked to set a … Continue reading

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