An odd year
‘Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow’
The day started with a flurry of snow. The soft white flakes falling across the vines were both beautiful and calming in equal measure, gracefully ending what can only be described as ‘an odd year’.
We are going to enjoy this evening soaking up the warmth of the fire in the salon, popping a bottle of local bubbly and tucking into the beef Wellington that Brian has made. We’ve eaten well since we arrived in France, even without a kitchen for the first few months. One of the things we really wanted with our move to France was to enjoy the food, wine and dining culture, and although we haven’t been able to visit many restaurants, we have joined our many neighbours and friends for ‘apéro’. We have also been able to explore the different food markets and enjoy the seasonal produce and local specialities.
Like almost everyone, we had hoped we could spend New Year with friends as we so often had done before, but things are different this year. With all that has happened we have been reflecting on all the fantastic support we have been given by friends and family on our move to France. It was a big decision for us even before the staggering effects of a pandemic, and one that we were unable to share with anyone until it all finally went into motion with the sale of our cottage.
We knew it would be a challenging year for us when we decided in January that 2020 was when we would make a huge life change. We were going to sell our home of 21 years, leave our employment, completely rearrange our finances and move to another country, leaving behind all of our friends and families. It seemed a daunting prospect, but little did we know how challenging it might get. Everything else aside, just the thought now of having to engage a removal company during a pandemic with a looming completion deadline leaves me cold. But we found Bray’s, and they were an absolute Godsend. In fact, everything worked out well in the end.
I wanted a way to remember what we had done, and see what we had achieved so as not to forget all the detail and challenges that we otherwise take for granted in our everyday lives. One way of doing that was to write it down, but I’ve never been much of a diarist. Brian suggested adding a blog to our website and ‘Our French adventure’ was born.
Writing my blog was just going to be a way of capturing my thoughts and feelings along the way to look at later when things calmed down, but I think it’s done more than that for me. With the restrictions we have all faced, which have impacted everything in all our lives, it has helped me stay in touch in a way that maybe otherwise wouldn’t have been possible. Sharing what we are up to has had the unexpected effect of bringing us somehow closer to everyone on a daily basis. Your comments and support have been numerous and uplifting, and a pleasure to read and respond to. We hope they will continue into 2021.
So thank you all, and we are both looking forward to a year just as exciting as the last one…but with less germs!
Jo x