Another year begins and may I wish you a happy new one with great hopes for 2020. For over 15 years now I have been sharing snippets of my life with you in some publication or another. You have been with me when my kids started school, when my eldest finished school, left home and then came back again – fun times! I have had a selection of jobs, friends loved and lost, and relatives passed away. I have travelled, moved house and made life-changing decisions, all of which I have put on a page for your perusal.
I have always written, even as a child. I tried to keep a diary a couple of times but at the age of eight my East Anglian upbringing wasn’t the stuff of bestsellers! I wrote poetry and as an only child that seemed a good enough pastime. I also read books constantly. Stories of girls in boarding schools having jolly adventures and lonely souls being rescued by injured horses or misunderstood collie dogs.
My local library was like a psychiatrist’s couch where I could lose myself for hours on end. I remember reading To Kill a Mockingbird and marvelling at the strength of the human spirit. In later life my reading menu has changed, and I love a good chick lit, or an adventure with Jack Reacher, or travels with Guy Martin.
As for my own writing, it has often been a way of making sense of things we cannot change. When my mum was dying, I wrote a diary. Not only to keep track of events but I also knew that one day I would be strong enough to go over the time again and use it as therapy, to realise that there were good times even on the darkest days and whilst the ending was never going to change, the memories can be repainted in slightly brighter colours.
I would love to have the time and talent to write a proper book full of excitement and intrigue, twists and plot thickeners, quirky characters and evil baddies. But whilst I have a good imagination, I have neither the patience nor the broadmindedness to keep anyone interested past chapter one. I did have a go at a kids’ book once and whilst my own children found it mildly amusing (and I kid myself that they weren’t old enough to ‘just be polite’) I have never had the courage to send it to anyone with any real expertise.
So, I’m afraid you are stuck with me (until Ed. gives me the sack) and I will continue to share with you the musings I have and the people I meet. The ‘Great British Public’ is a fascinating animal and never ceases to provide me with fodder – and I thank you for putting up with me so far!
So, bring on 2020 in all its ‘will we / won’t we?’ glory and let’s see where we end up, what we do about it and how we fix it.
Happy New Year!