Croft life is certainly not romantic; it is pure hard grind. The weather has been mostly wet and our garden & fields are waterlogged. Every time the dogs go out they come back covered in mud. The pigs have been escaping. Charlotte in particular is a very intelligent nosey pig; we keep wavering about keeping them for breeding or saying bye bye to them for dinner. I keep looking at Charlotte and make loads of excuses as to why we should keep her, even though I know in my head that they should go.
This last 2 weeks have been very cold, our Rayburn refuses to go to a decent temperature, it reminds me of my childhood when we used to get dressed as quickly as possible when we got up in the mornings and there would be frost on the inside of the windows.
Yet I still love it here, going down to the beach empty of people, watching the waves crashing in, watching the storm clouds gather in the huge sky. Walking the croft with the dogs on a frosty morning. Every time I go into an overheated building now I get claustrophobic and feel as though I am being boiled alive.
Ron has been away this week, working in Oxford & doing an AGM for the Haven in Colchester.
He arrived back yesterday & today we are all travelling to Denmark for a weekend in Copenhagen & Malmo in Sweden. Ron is working at Slotsvaat on Monday & I am sightseeing with the kids. Hoping to spend the day in Tivoli gardens tomorrow, perks of travelling so much is we can have the occasional trip like this on air miles.
The kids are becoming far too sophisticated travellers, asking whether they can be business class, & why are their no films on the flight. I think I was 15 before I went on my first aeroplane yet our kids have been to the other side of the world several times now; perhaps that is why it is so important that they are grounded in Lewis. Where life is much simpler & they cant keep asking for the latest new gadget.
Ron Coleman and Karen Taylor have an international reputation as speakers and authors. They are the directors of ‘Working to Recovery Limited’ an innovative international consultancy, training and publishing company with a cutting edge approach to supporting and improving mental health provision.
