A walk on a Sunday Morning

I've been in a Bad Mood all week, so come Friday night I had a glass of something nice and went to bed - and stayed there pretty much for 36 hours. It turned out that the change from night sift to late shift was harder than I thought it would be and I was simply really tired and stressed with trying to deal with life as it usually appears. I slept Friday night, a lot of Saturday and all of Saturday night too. I think that might be something of a record, but it worked. I woke up in a much more normal frame of mind and able to think about something other than how much I hate the things I don't like!

That said, this morning there was bright sunshine, and I wanted some bread and other bits from the supermarket, so I put on some spring/summer clothes (read skirt, vest and cardigan! Oh, and sandals), picked up my shopping bags and went the pretty way to the smaller Tesco around here.

I was ambling along as you do when the weather's nice and it's Springtime; looking at the wildflowers and catkins and leafbuds and enjoying the sound of the river, only to realise that there were people on the same path - a disused railway line - who were paying absolutely no attention to a season that is as short as this.

Runners. Charging past treasures that will be gone in a couple of weeks. Not seeing the new leaves, the cherry blossoms, the pattern of tree branches against the sky. I felt so sorry for them. Spring doesn't last long. The catkins dry up, the leaves burst open and turn the darker green of Summer, the grass grows and hides the speedwell and celandines and similar wildflowers.

That said, there were plenty of people easing along on a bike, or wandering like me; just out to see what was there as well as getting a breath of fresh air. People who had time to smile and say "good morning".

It felt good, and the best bit was that once I got to Tesco I was too early and had time to sit and enjoy the sunshine before doing my shopping and then wandering home along the same railway line and seeing everything from the opposite direction.

So don't worry, the runners didn't spoil my lunch and I am now the proud owner of a tall clear pepper milll filled with rainbow peppercorns. I look forward to putting it all over tonight's salmon!