The Daily Echo from Sleath Towers: Day 162

Life’s a giggle when you’re with friends, isn’t it? Especially when the weather is nice, and you are able to sit out in the garden without freezing to death. So, giggle we did.

I had been feeling tired the last day or two so, despite the fact that I woke up early this morning, I decided to rest on in bed in an attempt to give myself a boost. It was a toss-up at 6.30 this morning as to whether to leap out of bed and go for a walk, or to leap out of bed and do some mediation and yoga, or whether to put my head back down on the pillow. I was so looking forward to seeing Carol and John and Pete and Dawn this afternoon that I thought I’d put my head back on the pillow and get some more shut-eye so that I could make the most of our social gathering.

I was pleased I did. I felt refreshed and ready for a lovely afternoon with friends. The last time we physically saw Carol and John was Christmas. That’s an awful long time to wait to see a couple of your ‘besties’ but it was worth the wait. So lovely to see them and sit comfortably together talking about every topic under the sun, no matter if we agreed on the topic or not.

We had set out the chairs in readiness, prepped our lunch and put the kettle on, when round the corner they came, into the back garden. The only thing missing, of course, was a hug. Carol and John had brought their picnic lunch, so we all sat together, socially distanced, eating contentedly. We’d not long finished our lunch and supped the last drop of our cuppas when round the corner came Pete and Dawn. And that was it then. An afternoon of chatter, merriment and laughter.

The laughter was probably helped by a little alcohol. We had forgotten all about it, but on Grand National Day we had joined in with Pete and Dawn’s home sweepstake on the ‘virtual’ race. Carol had won first prize and John’s horse had come in second. The prizes? A bottle of Prosecco for Carol and a bottle of wine for John. “Shall we open the Prosecco?” said Carol. Well, it would be churlish not to, wouldn’t it? “Here’s to friendship!” we all chorused. Indeed. I second that.

The conversation never stopped for a minute all afternoon. We all had so much to talk about and it was a great relief to be able to chat face-to-face. We have so missed that warmth of togetherness during the lockdown period. Chatting on Skype is definitely better than nothing, but it’s certainly no substitute for the real thing.

The weather was kind to us today, too. I hadn’t checked out the weather forecast but what did John think? Should we put the gazebo back up? Will it rain? Perhaps we should? John pulled the gazebo out of the ‘man-shed’ and plonked it on the path. He checked the forecast. “There’s a very, very small chance of rain today. I don’t think I’ll bother putting the gazebo up.” I looked doubtfully at the dark rain clouds scudding over our house and crossed my fingers. Of course, he was right. We had a very balmy afternoon. Sometimes cloudy, but frequently sunny, and the gazebo wasn’t needed. We all sat out in our shirt sleeves or bare armed and enjoyed what looks to be the last of the summer sunshine for a week or two.

As always with these things, I was reluctant to see them all go. I don’t know how many times I have written that in my daily diary – it feels like a lot – but it’s always true. I would dearly love to hang on to my very dear friends for a much longer time than we ever seem to have. But go home they had to and we waved farewell, first to Pete and Dawn, who wanted to get back to Jack who’d been waiting in at home for a phone call, and then a fond farewell to Carol and John in the early evening. “Hope you have a safe journey!” we called as they set off on their way back to Derby. “Bye!”

Before Carol and John set off though, they carried out an inspection of the ‘estate’. “Let’s look at your ‘man-shed’, John,” and they strode down the garden to take a peek inside and cast an eye over the fascia board that John had put up all those weeks ago. “You’ve done a good job there,” they said. Then we had a walk round the flowerbed which they also duly admired.

Just before they left, John fetched two little Hosta plants from the car that he’d managed to separate out from some he’s growing at home, and a very healthy-looking tomato plant, which we battened down, tying it to the drainpipe before the winds get up tomorrow and blow it away. It’s only a little thing, but I was excited to have been gifted the Hostas. A Hosta is a plant I’ve often thought of getting, but never have. Fingers crossed that they like my soil!!

You may think our day is nothing startlingly exciting today, but it was something so comforting and solid that I feel very much better for having spent such a refreshing time with dear, dear friends. Might drink to that. What say you?

Meantime, there have been 853 people succumbing to the COVID-19 virus today, 4 deaths in the community and two people in hospitals yesterday. Steady numbers.

In the words of Dave Allen: may your God go with you all this week.