BLUEBELLS and a 100 word story

I have spent the past two weeks in England visiting family. I won't bore you with the details except to say that roughly 60 people attended my granddaughter's christening, and about two-thirds of those were related to the baby!

Spring in England is glorious, and especially so in Sussex and the South Downs. One lovely morning I went with my two daughters, their husbands and the baby to admire the bluebells around Ditchling Pond, and this photograph prompted my first 100 word story of the month.

TROLL

 They peered over the rail, trying to locate the source of the sound.

“I told you to tiptoe across,” Mandy scolded, “Now you’ve woken it up.”

“Nonsense - that was only a frog.” Alan raised a chauvinistic eyebrow at Jon and they stamped their feet defiantly.

“Stop it!” Debs pleaded, “I’ve just got her to sleep,” but it was too late. As Millie began to whimper, Debs wheeled the buggy away towards the bluebell field. Mandy treated the lads to a withering glance and followed her sister.

“Women’s hormones,” Jon scoffed, just as a huge hairy hand grabbed his ankle.

SNOW IN SUSSEX

 For those of you who missed the snow in Sussex last week, or don't get snow in your own countries, here are some photos taken last week.

BLIZZARD ON RACECOURSE HILL BRIGHTON

ROAD OVER THE DOWNS

THE ROAD IN FRONT OF MY SON'S HOUSE













THE GARDEN AT AROUND 4PM

THE GARDEN AT 9PM WHEN WE KNEW MY DAUGHTER HAD ALREADY BEEN STUCK ON THE A23 FOR FOUR HOURS.

AN EXTRA DAY OFF SCHOOL - YIPPEE!!




And some scenery to finish with.

this is how we like snow - here today, play tomorrow, gone the next!

I'M BACK!

Back home in time for a cup of tea followed by a drink at Bar Leones and supper at Pepe's.
Kika was so delighted to see me that she turned a dozen somersaults, which is quite an achievement for an old cat - she must be covered in bruises under all that fur - and she had a paw on my lap even before I had lifted my legs onto the sofa.

I also discovered I acquired two more followers while I was away, and I would like to extend a warm welcome to them.

The two weeks I spent visiting family and friends in Sussex were lovely. For one thing, it was the first time in thirteen years that I have celebrated Mothers' Day with my mother and my UK children and their families. They looked after me beautifully and I stocked up on grandson cuddles, though you can never have enough of those, can you?

The weather was kind to me too. I was only rained on once, and the snow that fell on Monday lasted just long enough for me to enjoy the novelty. This was the blizzard we drove through on Racecourse Hill outside Brighton, but we were home in time for tea.

My daughter wasn't so lucky. She left work in Crawley at 5pm and was stuck on the A23 for eight hours. We tried to find news and updates on the radio without success. My son phoned the police to ask what was being done to help all the stranded drivers, but he got no satisfactory answers, He would have rushed off to his sister's rescue if we hadn't persuaded him that if she couldn't get out, he wouldn't be able to reach her!

She survived, tired but unscathed, but there must have been mothers with young children in that cold traffic jam, people in need of medication, and drivers without sufficient fuel to keep their engines running to stay warm. We were not impressed with the failure of the Sussex Police to react more quickly to the emergency.

On Tuesday, though, school was closed. We built two snowmen - Clean Bob and Dirty Bob - then walked over the fields to make snow angels, and by teatime the sun had started to thaw the snow.

Those two weeks gave my eyes a rest from the screen and my grey cells a chance to ponder the best way to tackle the task ahead - another re-write. I was telling my son about it and he asked, "What would you put on the back cover?" Just thinking how to answer that question has helped me to focus on my story and to identify my main theme. Thanks for the inspiration, John - next time you come to Tenerife I'll buy you a pint of Dorada!