Hometown

We went back to the town I grew up in for a few days. My parents still live there. It's a small, unremarkable town to which I have very little attachment apart from my family home and my beloved parents.

We took the children to the local Rep
Panto in the theatre I used to work as an usher and scenery painter. It had hardly changed inside, it's a beautiful little theatre. The Panto was refreshingly low tech, traditional and even my two year old sat rapt, just a wee bit spellbound. It reminded me of the magic of theatre. I remembered working the whole run of Panto season and never tiring of the show. Even a Panto can become a world of its own, jokes changing, ad libbing and actors that were glad to bring the show alive. Sentimental and nostalgic I know -but it's what I do best here I think.

The next day D and I got a few hours to ourselves and had lunch in a sweet cafe, we could almost have been in Paris, it was that pretty. I tried to capture it in my picture.

Thanks for all your lovely wishes, I will reply to you when I have my laptop back. I won't be away from this space, I promise. It my day work I'm having an extended break from.

We are set to spend New Year with family we see so rarely and D and I are excited like children. If I'm not back before the bells, as we call them here, enjoy your celebrations everyone and once again thank you for reading my words. Jo xxx