Spring time hopes

Spring is symbolic to me of washing away (here, it seems literally with rain) the cold harshness of winter and replacing it with soft new growth… Buds on trees, the promise of heads peaking up through dormant soil, flowers promising to blossom. 

It is a wonderful time, possibly my favorite here. The song of birds in the early morning, the crisp blue sky and freshness that assaults my senses as I cycle into work. The nip is not yet gone but the sky promises warmth, and it can be found in certain locations around the house- a sunny spot on the couch, warm rays falling through the window. 

As is now typical in the Wood household, there is a lot going on. New seasons have arrived for Guy, and he too is in his transition as he searches for a new job and tries to navigate his career path. Two months ago we moved into our own house, which in itself has been dormantly wintering away, and we are trying to bring it back to life with care, attention and a fresh coat of paint. My job is steady, and I continue to grow ideas in research in protected time, but this is feeling like hard toil at present. A whirlwind tour of the western cape allowed us to touch base with family and friends and have a good break. 

  

So we are keeping busy in this springtime. There is much to be done as we sow the seeds for summer harvest, both figuratively and literally. Guy has already prepared the allotment and some seeds are already in. Daffodils are up already and snowdrops have already gone. Tulips are peaking through and the promise of summer draw us in and makes my heart sing. 

2014 Reflections and Hopes for the new year…

Merry Christmas and happy new year to all. I am always amazed at how quickly the year flies by and this time of year more than ever.

A new year is always a time for me to reflect on the year that was and ponder what I would like from 2015.

Reflections:
2014 was a busy year, and I had forgotten how much happened before Facebook reminded me with their cute year flashbacks.

In January my sister had her dream wedding and we spent two weeks vacationing in South Africa, trying to tie up loose financial ends, and see friends and family. It was a busy but heartwarming time and we returned in time for me to begin a new role at work as a spinal extended scope practitioner. This is one of those perfect jobs for me, that I have absolutely loved but has stretched me more than I could have expected. The opportunities and potentials for growth are enormous, and the responsibility huge. But I have learnt so much and am finally starting to feel more comfortable in this new role.

In March we moved to Nottingham, Guy started his first Public Health job in Sheffield and my Dad got diagnosed with kidney cancer. These three events all happened within three weeks of each other and my memories of this time was a frenetic and emotional time. I flew out unexpectedly for five days to support my dad after he had had his nephrectomy and was returning home from hospital. It was such a brief and emotional visit but I was so grateful that my parents flew me out to be a part of this traumatic time with them.

April saw our first road trip to Scotland where we camped on the shores of the beautiful Loch Lamond.

In May my folks sailed up to the UK and spend a week with us in our home. We collected them from Southampton and met my sister and her husband to spend a night in a country estate in Guildford before catching up with one of my Dad’s old friends. We then had the week in Nottingham where we relaxed in our new home and my Mom and Dad helped us with domestic chores and getting settled. Sadly we weren’t in the beautiful Peak district for this visit- we were sorely aware of the contrast of the small stepping stone house we had moved into from the beauty of the Peak District and the lovely house we had been living in. But it was lovely quality time and we enjoyed having them with us so much. We then spent a weekend in London with my sister and were able to enjoy the sights before heading on back to work and life.

Summer in the UK spoilt us with long days of sunshine and our first festival. We first had separate holidays where Guy met an Austrian friend to go surfing in Portugal for a week. I then met two of my best friends in Rome and Amsterdam for a weeks travels. July saw us travel to Devon for our first festival at Somersault and then off to France for a week in the Gascon region with good friends from our village Bamford. We went to Turkey in August for a long weekend to sail with my folks. Again too brief but too lovely. We celebrated the start of the Tour de France camping in Leeds and ogled the
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge from afar.

November saw myself visiting with my sister in London for three weekends (shopping, a course, and having an early Christmas weekend with all of us together). Poker nights were regularly held in Bamford allowing us opportunity to visit our good friends and catch up on fresh country air.

Christmas this year saw us celebrating in traditional English Christmas style – carols on Bamford green for Christmas Eve, and traditional lunch with new friends in Beeston followed by games on Christmas night. Boxing Day was begun with a run around Wollaton Park with the running club, and that night we were graced with heavy snow, transforming our neighborhood into a winter wonderland.

New Year’s Eve we set west for a five day trip to mid Wales where we saw in the New Year alongside good friends, a roaring log fire and much Prosecco.

We were spoilt by visits from Juliette for a night (all the way from Turkey), and Mark and Mel and their baby Zoe for a late dinner stop over. And many wonderful Skype visits with good friends and family in SA, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

Guy has been co managing an allotment with new friends Jane and growing beautiful organic black kale, striped beetroot, purple carrots, fresh peas, runner beans, spinach lettuce, corn and purple beans. Abundant strawberries, blackberries and raspberries adorned our plates for months.

I ran my fifth marathon with Guy, my sister and Dave supporting me by running the half. I almost made my goal time, but was three minutes off- will have to train harder next year! We partook in the Nottingham Robin Hood Orienteering race which was classic for its authenticity, value for money and novelty.

We began the proceedings of trying to purchase a house in Nottingham. …And are still waiting for this to be completed. We are looking forward to having something that will be our own and we can make homely.

Work wise Guy has learnt a lot, and has expanded his horizons. Next year hopefully will help him to consolidate his skills and determine the direction that he would like to head in. I am loving working in the Spinal team, am trying to publish my first paper and have just been offered a position to be a permanent member of the team from just covering a maternity leave position. I was awarded a scholarship to begin my PhD proposal and hope to complete this by August next year.

Looking forwards:
I hope and pray we both can remain healthy and happy and able to minimal is our stress as we strive to pack in as much as we can while we are here.
We begin the new year with a bang with a 19 mile run in the Cotswolds with the mad scientists. Hopefully we can spend a night with my sister and her husband and enjoy this area together.

We hope we can complete on our house and move in before the month is up.

February we fly back to South Africa for special friends Warren and Liz’s wedding in Hermanus. 9 days in SA is not nearly long enough, but hopefully we can fit in a visit to Guys dad and a camping trip with friends.

And the rest of the year… There is talk of Alpine mountain biking trips, time on a cruise with my folks … And more adventure brewing. Maybe an extended family?

My hope is that our relationships with our family members will continue to be enhanced and strengthened as we appreciate what we have in them, and our relationships with friends in both UK and Worldwide continue to grow.
In our professional lives, I hope we both will find fulfillment, satisfaction and growth.
I hope we can run a European marathon (or do a race) and see a bit more of the continent and places we haven’t yet explored.

And at home to have some downtime, continue to do crafting activities- scrapbooks, sewing, creations – whilst not being stressed in the doing and being.

We have had a very full 2014 ( now I understand why we are so tired) and I hope we may have a year to match and be even better in 2015. A friend posted these true and beautiful words on Facebook and summaries what I hope for you and me in this year to come:

Life, love and contemplation

I have been struck of late by how much we are learning, changing, evolving in our short time we have been here. I think being removed from the busyness of our full lives in SA where we were always rushing from one engagement to the next, has allowed us the space to reflect. Or should I say I have been given the space to reflect. Sitting in a bnb room by myself for four to five nights a week (without the distraction of masterchef- the series that kept me sane in December!) has really made me introspective and helped me to assess myself, us, our lives. Yes, this has taken me through roundabouts of insecurities, concerns, anxieties and after much contemplation, I feel I am making peace with the fact that I don’t have to be it all.

So often I have forced or expected myself to do it all. Be ironman fit, on top of the latest physiotherapy research, be a successfull business owner, loving wife, perfect housewife, loving and compassionate mate, crafter etc. The first few weeks of working in Barrow, I tried to keep up these expectations. Or shall we say I threw myself into them as a distraction of the frightening realizations that were settling in. You can look at it either way, and I think I flurried from one extreme to the other. I would travel all of Friday to arrive home and madly rush around the house trying to do all the housework and washing, and then leave early Saturday morning to go back to work, come back Saturday afternoon to begin cooking meals for the week ahead, before collapsing exhausted and stressed, and then pack my bags and leave the next day. I then wondered why I wasn’t growing my relationship with the one person of significance in my life? Instead growing resentful, blaming and frustrated.

After reading an insightful blog I realized possibly my controlling tendencies were part of the problem. He would offer to do things, but I would tell him not to because I wanted them done my way. I felt only I could do that job properly, or was it this weird responsibility that as a woman I needed to keep the house clean and do these jobs?

These last few weeks have been a different story. I have (tried to) let go of my controlling tendencies, teaching him how to do washing loads and not critiquing his cleaning of the kitchen or bathroom, just trying to be grateful for his attempt and effort at trying to reduce my stress. I am learning that I am not expected to do it all. No one but myself places that expectation or pressure on me. I am not expected to have cooked every meal in advance. He won’t go hungry and nor will I. I do not have to be ironman fit. I am allowed to run slowly. To walk slowly. In fact as my loving husband keeps reminding me, I need to walk slower. Just to breathe in the air and allow my body to relax. I seem to have this built in need to go as fast as possible. Use every precious minute productively.

When I first came to barrow I would allow myself the grace of watching Tv but only if I cross stitched while I did so or made cards. I seem to feel this pressing need to use every moment productively or account for it all. When in fact I am allowed to have unaccounted for moments. And hours. I am allowed to stare out the window and dream. It feels like I haven’t done that for years.

I am learning that slowing down is a good thing. A chance to enjoy the moments in time and not let them sweep past without notice. I am learning to be easier on myself and loved ones around me.

And amazingly, since I started writing this reflection, about one month ago, a lot has changed. Maybe a combination of less stress on me and my man, but I have come home to a house which he has cleaned for me, to allow me to relax. I feel guilty to link the two directly, and am unsure whether we have both reached a place of quiet understanding of each others needs, but I have been so blessed. And I feel I have been able to receive this blessing from him without question. I have been able to come home to a spotless house, dinner surprised for me, and able to have more quality time with my love. This in turn, has really helped us to have more time to talk, and share, and have fun together again.

It is a work in progress. A daily learning initiative. I am learning that if I make the effort to be funny and laugh, the mood of a room
can change. I like that. Feeling, that I can be in control of how I feel and how my day will go. It’s now to put it into practice each day.

Two weeks of my new position has now passed and although my commute is long, the work is not nearly as demanding as the days were in Barrow. Hopefully this means our quality of life can be enriched and we can enjoy life together daily.

It was valentines day yesterday, and I was spoilt by my husband with presents (because he knows I love them) and with a lovely clean house. He has made so much effort in loving me and going beyond his needs. I have learnt so much from him and his effort inspires me to want to demonstrate my love for him in more ways. you could say that by giving a little love, it goes a long way! I am so amazed and how lucky we have been in learning from and going through difficult times, and yet still coming out together, hands held tight, laughing and smiling. I am feeling particularly grateful for my partners presence in my life today, and the fact that I can share this adventure with him. Sometime we only realize too late the blessings that abound in our lives. I am aiming to not take things for granted this year but rather to be mindful of my blessings, present in my daily activities and thankful for my opportunities.

Here’s to a fabulous 2013!!!

Lucky traveller

We shall not cease from exploration, and at the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time. T.S. Eliot

In the past month I have been so privileged to be able to see so many amazing places for interest and holiday. It finally feels like we are beginning to take oppurtunities and go exploring in larger circles than before.

Here’s a photographic journey:
Wollaton Hall and Hardwicke House with my sister and her husband

A rare oppurtunity to do a study day in Oxford followed by a lunch in London with my sister

A special week with my parents first in Croyden at a stately home, then to Stanford in the Vale to see our Wicks Heritage, before returning to Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.

And then a brief sojourn to Rome…

Before exploring scenic Amsterdam…

Spring reflections

March month means the year is well and truly rolling forward and gathering momentum. Organizational hopes are often still on the to do list and well laid plans are yet to be acted upon. It also means spring, here in the UK. A time of change, a time of newness, a time of growth and embodies my year so far. I don’t think any other country does spring as well as the UK. Cherry blossoms, apple blossoms, daffodils and snow drops have progressively decorated our new surrounding environment, and coupled with the longer rays of light, and the blue skies seen more frequently, almost convince one that spring has arrived.

For us these three months have symbolized different types of change.
First there was my little sisters wedding- little sisters seem all grown up when they are saying their vows and getting married. It was all incredibly beautiful and detailed, just as my sister is and has always wanted. Yet all too surreal for me. I think the tragedy of being so far away during such an important time is that you miss the build up, the planning, the choosing and the preparation. Usually you only see the end product. I was lucky enough to spend the week before her wedding with my family and was able to assist with the last minute preparations- fetching, dropping, sorting, organising and being able to share in some of the build up. And now I have been able to see her photos and cherish the beauty of the occasion and the memories of a night gone too quickly.

We returned to England to news of our home being sold and an urgency to be out within a month. As such, a mad scurry ensued to find a house that met our criteria- close to my work, cheaper and cat friendly. This process was complicated by the stress of Guy’s first job interview, and the waiting phase to hear whether he had made the grade or not. He got the job and now the exciting change of having an full time employed husband after almost one and a half years begins. Prospects, dreams and ambitions shoot through the prepared ground of the past 18 months as we eagerly anticipate the seeds of his labour.

Spring is a time of newness and for us this meant new surroundings and a new beginning in terms of relocation. One week to go before our move and we were informed the house we had chosen didn’t take cats. We scrambled to extend our current lease and find a new property as we wanted to move by the beginning of the new month. Thankfully by the Monday we had our first house choice and only needed to proceed with the act of moving. Boxes needed to be packed and moving vans booked. Which always takes longer than one plans! We were greatly blessed by a friend of Guy’s from uni who came through on the Friday night to help us pack and load the van, and then met us in Nottingham on the Saturday to unload. The rest of the weekend and following week was spent unpacking, moving and buying furniture to unpack into and around. Finally, our house is starting to feel like our home.

Change often accompanies a change in weather. With this comes uncertainty and uncertain expectations. In the midst of this move, I received news from my family in South Africa that my father, who had been struggling with worsening fatigue for the past four months, had been diagnosed with kidney cancer. We didn’t know much at then, but by last Friday, the operation for a radical nephrectomy was booked for the following Monday. We had limited understanding of what this meant, both in the short and long term. My sister had flown down to support my Mum and Dad through the operation itself. Thankfully as it proved to be a larger operation than planned, as the tumor was bigger than they had hoped. They had to cut through his abdominal muscles and the operation took 2 hours longer than expected. I hate to think how my mum and sister felt, waiting almost four hours for news of his recovery. He was taken to ICU for the night where they monitored him closely and by Tuesday he was discharged to the ward. Although I left Nottingham at 1pm on Tuesday afternoon, I only reached my family in Durban at 11.30am on Wednesday morning. The time couldn’t pass soon enough. When my sister fetched me from the airport it was with the news from the latest doctor’s visit, which confirmed he wouldn’t need chemo and would now begin three monthly follow ups.

Seeing my Dad in hospital, sitting up in bed with a grin on his face cheered my soul to no end. I think I had prepared myself for the worst. Having left my dad 6 weeks earlier without a care in the world, it was still a shock to see him looking frail and sore in hospital. Shortly after arriving, they took out his CVP line and abdominal drain and he felt strong enough to go for a walk. I could use my physiotherapy voice and be useful! It was so wonderful to see him with colour in his face and his sense of humour back. Being there was the best thing I could have done, as no amount of verbal reassurance could have done what seeing him did. By the Thursday evening he had been discharged home, had his first taste of Sauvignon blanc and I knew then that he would be ok. Time will now do it’s job and help him heal his wounds as he faces an altered reality.

My mum on the other hand has wounds that aren’t visible to the eye. She has always been the family’s career, nurturer and mother in all senses of the word, and having my Dads wellbeing at risk in a way she can’t fix, I think has shaken her to the core. She has multiple projects running side by side and the stress of managing his care alongside the rest of life’s dramas is all quite overwhelming at present. Thankfully my sister and I were present to try to ease her load, baking, cooking, replying to emails and assisting with errands.

I was grateful to leave my parents in my sisters care last night, as tonight her and her husband leave them to now face reality alone. In this spring season I can only pray that they will find spring in their lives together, especially after this sudden cold front of winter that has hit. That they will be able to smell the flowers with a renewed sense of appreciation, that they will have the time to enjoy the little things in life together like seeing the buds and enjoying the blossoms of life.

Somehow in life we seem to make it so complicated. We seem to fill our lives with stuff and bulk (largely necessary stuff) that is important, but detracts from the really important things we need to focus on- spending time with our loved ones, loving them and having fun with them. Real time that is not just distracted or arbitrary but building time, quality time.

I write this as I am sitting on a train with blue skies and green rolling fields passing by as I travel home to my husband who waits for me. This trip home has reminded me of the important things in my life, and of the importance of living for today. None of us knows when our number will be called, nor when our life may be irrevocably changed. For today, I am grateful that my father has another chance. That my relationship with my parents has improved in quality and time spent together, and that we can enjoy each others company. That I was able to spend these few stolen days with them due to their generosity and that I could play some role in his recovery. That my husband is my husband, and that I have a partner to share this life with.

As spring blossoms unseasonably early in the UK we expect another cold snap. I know weather is never always the same, and nor is life. I hope I can embrace loved ones and life more openly and warmly following the lessons the year has already taught me.

Memoir

Today was a day in which I missed my gran. For the last few days I have been lus (South African for craving)for my gran’s famous fridge cake. I have grown up with it- it was always my father’s favorite and so whenever Nana came around, she would bring a container of fridge cake (usually in a white and blue Pyrex dish that I have now inherited). Holidays, weekends, would all have moments of carefully cutting out a piece of the moreish cake (hoping no one else in the family would notice you were having your “second” piece of the day).

My gran was a renowned cook, baker and home maker. When we were packing up her home after her death two years ago, everything of hers was in pristine condition. Her home was beautifully kept and remains an inspiration to me when I am scrubbing down our stainless steel kettle or baking trays.

As I become more of a homemaker myself, I have missed her in my adulthood. She was a tremendous sewer and needlecrafter. She embroidered doilies, cross-stitched tablecloths and crocheted many beautiful pieces. I can only truly appreciate the hours of hard work and love now as I have started to begin my own journey of creating for family and home. I am just grateful to have some of her pieces and recipes that I can share with my children to come.

So today I made fridge cake- my Nana’s recipe, and thought of her and her wonderful skills in the home and kitchen. I missed my Nana, and all the wonderful times we shared as a family with her and my Gramps. But most importantly, I was inspired to carry on my heritage of her talents through continuing to keep them alive. Using her marmalade recipe, baking fridge cake, and learning to crochet (next on the to do list!). I may not have been able to do these things with her but I can carry on her legacy and make sure I can do them with my children.

This is the recipe for fridge cake: super easy and super moreish:
250g butter
2 packets Marie biscuits (I used one large tea biscuits)
1/4 cup chopped nuts
1c sultanas
1 Tbsp cocoa
1c sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence

Break biscuits into quarters in bowl.
Melt butter and sugar on stove, stirring continuously and add cocoa.
Beat eggs well and add to sugar mixture, stir until thickens.
Add sultanas and nuts and vanilla essence.
Press into dish with potato masher.
Keep in fridge.
After its set enjoy!!

Home

“Home is people. Not a place. If you go back there after the people are gone, then all you can see is what is not there anymore” Robin Hobb, Fool’s Fate

I was going home. Alone. Which wasn’t how I had pictured it, but necessary for the opportunity to be a part of my family’s celebration of my Grandmother’s 90th and necessary to begin to clear a path in the chaos we had left in our wake of leaving. I was blessed out of my socks by quality time with people I love, being spoilt by my family and good friends, and getting to embrace some of South Africa’s finest sights and experiences.

I really felt spoilt at the chance to go home at this time, especially as we hadn’t planned it this way. When we left South Africa, despite having booked a return ticket (at a random date for us to change when we knew our own plans better) we had every intention of only returning after a year. But sometimes things happen that change our plans, and sometimes things seem too well orchestrated to not take advantage of the situation. This was kind of the story as to how I landed back on home soil after only 6 months. Our random return date that I had chosen to comply with the air flight booking happened to fall a day before my dear grandmother’s 90th. However, Guy was in the middle of his final master’s term,and was thus unable to leave due to the pressures and deadlines on him. My new job that I had only begun two months earlier were very understanding and relaxed about my leave, making it much easier to decide to “just do it”.

As it turned out, my entire family on my mother’s side made the effort to be together- the first time I have been apart of a complete reunion in too many years.

The Ferguson Family celebration (photo courtesy of my dad, Ian Wicks)

My wonderful family and Grandmother, Dotty

My cousin surprised us all by flying in from Los Angeles and we had two nights of connecting, laughing, gambling and jesting amongst the Ferguson tribe. Celebrating with my gran was so special, considering that a week after our arrival in the UK, my grandfather had passed away and we had not been able to return for his funeral. Seeing my gran, and my family all together was incredibly heart warming and special. How many more we will have? This was all made the more special and significant by my sister’s engagement that had occurred the weekend prior to my arrival. I was even more grateful to my parents who sacrificed a day of their time with me so that I could have a day with her in her new home, shared by her and her fiancé. The sparkling news of their engagement was celebrated by us on the Thursday night, and I was lucky enough to see pictures of her ring to be, and join in the discussions and plans for the engagement party and wedding.

The newly engaged Trace and Dave, celebrating with French Champagne!

My parents spoilt me in many many ways. One of the things I have always loved to do in South Africa has been to go to the ‘bush’. My gran’s original party plan was to be held at Hluhluwe-Umfolozi game reserve, until the Johannesburg family felt it was too far to come for a weekend. I was devastated with the news that I wouldn’t be going to the bush in my short trip. Mum and Dad came to the rescue and booked us two nights in my favorite camp-Mpila. A hilltop unfenced camp, with views for miles over the Kwazulu Natal countryside. One has to be constantly alert as wild animals from hyenas to bush pig and antelope walk past your front ‘stoep’ at all hours and with little warning. You cannot leave your meat in the braai unattended as the hungry scavenger Hyenas will do their best to get your food before you do. This scenario ended up with us all sitting around the fire and Dotty (my 90 year old granny) having the golf club at her side in case we needed it!

Sunset at Mpila camp, Umfolozi (thanks Dad for the pic)

We were incredibly privileged in our one full day there to see lion, wild dog, rhinos, elephant and all the antelope. Buffalo, hyena and beautiful birds and birds of prey were also amongst the list. There is nothing quite like the silence of the bush and the beauty of the animals to restore one’s soul.

My time was much too short with my family. There is no doubt about that- just when we were all starting to really catch up and help each other with things at their home, I had to leave to go to Cape Town. Sitting on the plane made me realize why people often take two weeks just to be with family, as being together and getting used to one another takes time. People are layered, and we slowly start peeling off layers the more we relax and unwind with those we love.

Cape Town: where a trail of appointments awaited me , along with a list of chores, people to see and places to go. There’s no doubt that I love my family and being with them was fantastic, but I love Cape Town as well. Flying into the city (in the jump seat thanks to my dear Captain friend!) and looking at the beauty of Table Mountain and the peninsula mountains, brought to mind so many happy memories, adventures and experiences shared with my darling partner and great friends.

Two full days is never enough in Cape Town, not least when one has Pilates exams, dental appointments and trying to rummage through umpteen boxes left at three different destinations. Trying to see everyone who is special to me (and us) was impossible. So if I didn’t get to see you this time, I promise I will make sure I do next time. The friends I did get to see, it was so special being able to catch up, laugh together and be a part of your lives again. Thank you. You enrich our lives so much, and being with you for those short moments reminded me of how lucky we are to be able to call you our friends.

Good friends at Massimo’s Pizza restaurant – Guy’s favourite

Good friends at Massimo’s Pizza restaurant – Guy’s favourite

A walk on Table Mountain with Pete and Andrea and
their new baby Daniella

With darling Czerina

Good friends at Massimo’s Pizza restaurant – Guy’s favourite

Simon and Theresa (Guy’s brother and sister-in-law) and sweet Pixel

Amazing Ironman Elize and myself

With dear Lolita and Nico

All too soon I was on the plane again and heading out. This time with tears in my eyes as my plane took off, bound for Heathrow. My four bags (!) were not nearly big enough for all that I wanted to take with me. So many South African delicacies or designs that embody the vibrant culture and nature of the people and land we love. It reminded me why I am proudly South African, irrespective of where I presently live. It made me want to live with more memories of home around us so that people who know us here in the Uk can know our beautiful land and country as well. It made me want to plan my next trip home with my husband so that he too can feel the depth of love, gratitude, pride and appreciation that fills my soul.

“There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways In which you yourself are altered” Nelson Mandela, The Long Walk to Freedom

Cats make a house a home

After a week working away from home in the town of Barrow in Furness (more on that to come later) I returned to a home that was full of love, welcome and warmth. Yes, my weary husband welcomed me back with arms open wide, but my two precious cats which have become more like children in the past few years, made all the difference.

What a journey it has been for them- after planning on putting them in kennels for one week, a misunderstanding due to rabies quarantine meant they stayed in the kennels in South Africa for 61 days waiting for the three month post rabies titre to pass. Thankfully it meant that we could get the house unpacked, set up and ready for them in the interim. They had to go for more check ups 48 hours before flying, and then were dispatched on Wednesday morning to the airport where they got ready for their flight. They then travelled on a BA flight overnight, arriving on Thursday morning. Guy drove into Heathrow to collect them, managing to get away by 3pm to begin the four hour return trip to Bamford. He said they meowed most of the way home and when he let them out of their cages, I am not sure if they were relieved or more mystified.

They have been desperate for cuddles and affection since they have been home with us. I am not quite sure what they think of the weather, but we have put them in the sunny spots on the sofa which they have lapped up. Grey has taken to her new ‘cat box’ but I don’t think either of them can figure out how to use their cat scratching poles, lovingly made for them by their father. They have both slept with us on our bed the past few nights and seem to be settling down more now. At least now when we leave a room they don’t start crying for us anymore!

“I love cats because I love my home and after a while they become its visible soul.”
– Jean Cocteau