I've just got back from a trip to Bristol, where Matt and I stayed with our good friends Andrew & Rebecca and their 4 kids. Mungo, their oldest is my Godson and just turned 9. It was great to see how he, his brothers and sister are growing and developing.
Returning home to Old Blighty is always fun and this time was no different. We had some beautiful weather, stayed just a few short steps away from Clifton Downs in one of the many beautiful houses there, got to rest up as well as spending time with each of the kids and even managed to pop over to Wales to visit other friends there.
Apart from family and friends, one of the things I love about Britain is the friendliness of strangers. Just walking around people will smile and greet you, it’s all too easy to have a short conversation with a shop assistant and I always stop to chat with the Big Issues sellers when I buy one. Don’t get me wrong, I love living in Germany but I do wonder it the Germans don't know what they’re missing in their shyness to engage in little interpersonal exchanges throughout the day. Not long after we moved to Germany, one of Matt’s colleagues asked him “What’s wrong with your wife? She’s always smiling!” !!!! Also, both times that Kate has been over to visit she’s commented on the lack of smiles when out and about. You’ll be lucky to get a passerby to catch your eye, let alone smile.
Another thing I love is the numerous bookshops, new but most especially secondhand. As I mentioned before, reading is as essential as breathing to me and I wanted to seriously stock up on this trip. If I’m going to read 40 books, then I need 40 books to read, simple! So between raiding my friends’ bookshelves, charity shops and Wesley Owen, I returned with 22 books!
The visit to Wesley Owen was a joy, not least because I got to take Mungo, he is a young man after my own heart when it comes to reading. After telling me he had either read or been read all the children’s books in the house, I promised to buy him a new book and gave him a budget of £10. He chose 2 books totaling £9.98 (he endeavoured to assure me) and then found another in the reduced section for just £3. “Please Aunty Kathy!” Well how could I refuse? After all, I had 7 books in my hand.Here he is, pleased as punch with one of his new books.
Anyhow, my challenge for you today; smile at a stranger and get your nose in a book.
"Resolve to edge in a little reading every day, if it is but a single sentence." - Horace Mann
