freedom passing

It's the last day of the holidays for me. Tomorrow it is back to work, back to early mornings of darkness and days in front of the computer. I will no longer be able to sit, engrossed in a book on the sofa for an afternoon, but will dash off to meetings and plan workloads.

I was going to spend the day in London, going around the National Gallery and the Tate Britain with Mum, but unfortunately Dad has managed to do some serious-sounding damage to his foot, and so has to be ferried to and from work in stockinged feet. I hope it recovers before they depart for snowier climes. My second plan was to go for a nice long walk, but the weather put a stop to that. Rain clouds hovering and drizzle dampening didn't fill me with enthusiasm, so I loaded up the car with the recycling and headed off towards Lewes. Once the boot was empty, I took a leisurely drive through Offham and turned left to Plumpton, running the car smoothly along under the downs, through Ditchling and up the Beacon to that glorious view at the top. Fields upon fields of green, squared off with hedgerows and thick clumps of cloud hanging low over it all.

This afternoon I braved a walk into town, managing to restrain myself and only buy two books. I shall spend the next few hours writing Thank You cards and curling up with a cup of steaming coffee and a book, the last peaceful afternoon of freedom.