Here is something I posted at my other place a while ago, but is more relevant now, as we move closer and closer to the move. I am off later today to clean the new place a bit before we start the gradual transition, the main part of which will be this weekend.

Since writing the post some things have changed: We know where we are moving to for a start. And the tiny bathroom issue has been resolved… we will have two of them! We will be living on the first floor but we have the opportunity to build a roof garden! Any ideas on how to do this as cheaply as possible and to make it as “green” as possible, would be much appreciated. I have been offered a load of large pots for my existing plants and we are looking into ideas for a roof shelter, cheap decking (I came up with the idea of using those wooden pallets that supermarkets get their deliveries on) and various seating and table plans (we found a great piece of marble in the street and are on the lookout for “legs” for it). We cannot build anything permanent but apart from that, the world is ours.

I wish you could all be there at our house-warming party once we’re settled. I know you’ll be there in spirit… Thank you for your support and kindness over this strange period. One of our first priorities will be getting connected to the internet…

Here is the post…

To regular readers of this blog, people who know me and anyone who cares,

Over the last couple of months I have promised posts that have not appeared or have been a long time in coming. For that I apologise but I also want to explain what is going on. I have been very scattered in my thinking/blogging these days and my real life has been the same. We have to move house in the very near future. I know that it doesn’t sound like a very big deal but it really is, on a personal level.

I have moved many, many times before so I should, in theory, be taking this in my stride but the older I get, the more difficult it has become. Having invested so much time and effort into our home and more significantly (to me) in our garden, I am terribly sad to be leaving it. Also, for those who know me in real life, we will be leaving something that is very important to us in our creative life.

I am, on the one hand, excited to be moving. New house. New beginnings. A decent bathroom ! On the other side, I am leaving a garden that I so lovingly made out of nothing. I am leaving plants that I nutured and struggled with. I am leaving the jasmine that I planted in the memory of my mother-in-law. I am leaving the soil that I dug and fed and tried to bring to life. I have a strong attachment to this tiny patch of land.

But it’s not just the plants. I can grow more. I can even take some with me for the new place. It’s also the memories. The overwhelming nostalgia. Our very good friends used to live upstairs. They have now moved a long way from us and that is part of why we are having to leave too. Our kids grew up together. Those three boys (my one and their two) have all peed on the lemon trees. They have all fallen out of their branches. Their basketball/footballs have smashed various windows and flowerpots. Their screaming and silliness have got on our nerves. Their bikes have crashed into walls and been left out in the rain (much to our annoyance). Their laughter has filled our ears so that they are still ringing.

The memories are strong, almost overwhelming. The parties, the barbecues, the late night music sessions, the impromptu coffees in the sun, the “I have a few sausages and potatoes, you have some salad and bread, why don’t we pool our resources and eat together?”

I know there will be new memories. Good ones. Great ones. And our lives have already changed, in that we and many of our great friends have moved away , got real jobs, different commitments and all that that entails.

That we are all getting older is a fact. And I am not so worried about that as I was when I turned 40. What I want to say is that I treasure the memories that I have of this place and of all of you that made those memories. I am just having a hard time letting go…

So deep breath… here’s to a new era. And new memories. And bear with me if I’m a bit wobbly for a while…