Nature has its own way of surviving.
There in the bonfire pile at the back of the house is a green and cream hosta.
The roots must have been put out by mistake and the plant has recovered and is now rising from the ashes.
It is a hopeful sign. And although these are difficult times, hope is what we must carry with us.
With the passage of time my hopes have become far simpler.
Wishing for things I can have
No longer do I dream of winning the lottery. Then I never buy a ticket, so fat chance there.
Nor do I hope one day to run a marathon. Or learn to speak Cantonese. Or master a musical instrument.
No, some things are just too improbable. Therefore, these days my wishes are rather more realistic.
For example, I hope that my second attempt at growing runner beans will not end in the same failure as the first.
The rabbits had the last lot – and they were nearly a foot high.
Seeing the sun this summer
I hope that to see something of the sun this summer. Surely to goodness we deserve a bit of brightness along the way?!
I hope that the dark patch in the end bedroom is not what I think it is: the start of mould caused by a leaking chimney breast.
I hope that family and friends stay happy and healthy.
And I truly hope that the naughty Norfolk will stop being so destructive.
One morning this week the littlest MacNaughties is left alone in the kitchen. It is a bad mistake.
Bad boy Bennie
Somehow, Bennie manages to pull an oversized handbag from the chair it is minding its own business in.
He then proceeds to empty the contents of a makeup bag onto the floor. And when I catch up with him he has crunched a creamy lipstick and chewed a powdery eye-shadow.
The result is that his mouth is now variously red and sparkly grey.
Yet it does not end there. Because Bennie has also managed to snap the side of my favourite sunglasses.
OK, they weren’t expensive – because I usually lose them, none of mine are – but they were quite stylish.
I seeth silently. And try to remember what someone once told me.
‘Who angers you, conquers you’
It is never their fault. Because an owner should not allow their pet to get into a situation where they can get into trouble.
My battered possessions are recovered. Bennie is glared at, and I start breathing and counting.
‘Take a deep breath and count to ten. If very angry count to a hundred’. Which politician was it said that?
Or ‘he who angers you conquers you’. I can’t recall who uttered those words, either, but it makes sense.
I will not be beaten by a wee tyrant terrier. Bennie is put into his cage where he can reflect on his misdeeds for half an hour.
Then it is a jolly walk up the valley; nothing like a bit of exercise to calm the mind…
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