I know that there is some polar vortex right now in the US, bringing insanely cold temperatures. So I should not complain, but it is cold here. Most days don’t get above 5 degrees, and most nights go below -1. Its snowed a lot too. But there are mornings that fill you with hope. The sky is clear, turning from indigo to pale blue, a large golden moon between the rooftops. Slowly, the sun butters the world in a mellow light, and its just so beautiful. Freezing, but beautiful.
You know I once hated this season. I’m a summer girl; bright sunshine, long warm days, cloudless skies. But I’ve slowly started liking Fall. And this year in Bergen, surrounded by auburn and marigold colored leaves and spiralling sycamore seeds, I decided Fall was beautiful too. Some of the sunrises; getting ready to cycle to work, dawn breaking. And the glorious evening sunlight bathing everything in a rich, buttery glow. There were still so many days of lovely weather, too. But you started to feel the shift, that it might be warm in the day, but evening’s cold air would creep in sooner and sooner. And during the week of my half-term break, it was clear what season was in charge.
That funny time of year in Europe. When the heat hangs on, but the sun takes longer to surface in the mornings, and the moon is still a feature of the sky when you first step outside. The last week of my admittedly very long summer holiday. It was hard to leave family in England, but the dogs were along for the final ride. A week in Bruinisse, a chance to enjoy our soon-to-be-home, before I started my first real job.
There are roses which grow on the side of the wall. At first as rich and red as an expensive wine, slowly fading with the sun. Prune sniffs around them indifferently, then goes to lie down in her favorite spot. Summer time. When Prune came to us seven years ago, summer was slowly ending, Fall on its way. How she used to run, wild and young and free, late summer sun dancing across her shiny fur.
You know its rare that I say this but sometimes it really is nice not to travel. At least, not during the summer when you have a huge garden and patio and the roads are crowded and the airports stuffy. Of course, there’s the weather to consider. It might never get as hot as the continent, or as bone-dry as Southern Europe, but as we like to say, rain and stuff just tend to ‘blow over’ and not linger too long. Hence, a summer at home. Which also makes sense since this is likely our last summer in Norfolk.
The evening sun cast long shadows over the moors and glens, sheep chased after the farmer’s tractor for dinner, mother cows called their infants back. The road was long and winding, the light hypnotic. Two hours out of Aberdeen, at least seven to go. Miles of British countryside between us and home, places I’d vaguely heard of but knew almost nothing about. Still just places, passed by but not through. The final journey, an adventure, after a year that was both.
Those two monkeys never fail to make me laugh. I think I appreciate them even more when I’ve been away, and all their funny little quirks. This Easter we did a lot together- Holland, with Suzi lying on my lap and Prune resting her head on her in the car. Exploring the dykes, watching boats at the marina. Redwings, Suzi’s first time meeting the horses. Enjoying the garden and the new patio- sunny spring days meant the three of us could be outside often. And of course, drives in the Mini- those two love leaping in for an adventure.
I had been waiting for this for ages. Three months is a long time when its your first year away from home. We were heading up the driveway, lined with daffodils, my favorite flowers. The trees were still bare-leaved and glistened with raindrops, legacy of a cold, wet March. I headed straight for the kitchen and was soon being smothered by two bundles of wagging tails and jet-black fur.
Tranquil. Not a word we normally associate with India. But beyond the often discussed hustle and bustle, chaos, dust and noise there is indeed a laid-back side to the sub continent. I came to India this year to unwind having had a stressful few months and found that even in Bangalore, the hectic hub of a city that seems to grow by the day, it is possible to relax.
